


Aslaug Völsunga - Origins

by CrystalHeartZyx



Series: Völsunga Saga and the AEGIS Covenant [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: F/F, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:00:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 35
Words: 138,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25892485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalHeartZyx/pseuds/CrystalHeartZyx
Summary: The dragon Fafnir was slain by the hero Sigurd. And then things got complicated.This is the story of Aslaug, the daughter of Sigurd, who grew up without mother or father, inheriting their legacy and their problems - including the dragon her father had once slain.This is how Aslaug made a big, complicated, loving family, and forged her own legacy that would shape her entire world forever.
Series: Völsunga Saga and the AEGIS Covenant [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881451





	1. Aslaug's Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This was a fun little project that I made as a bit of a background story for my characters that I have in my own little universe. It gets a bit rambly at times - as my work always is - and other times I have uber short chapter breaks that I just can't fit into another chapter coherently. I found it fun to write either way and I have plans for the sequel of it as well. Woot!
> 
> I tried to base a lot of the history of this story on the Völsunga Saga, and try my best to be historically accurate, but if anyone finds some discrepancies, feel free to comment on them.  
> :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a work of fiction that I loosely based on mythology that I found interesting.  
> Mostly me word-bombing all my thoughts on these characters that I made, just having fun with the beginning of a world that I plan to base other stories on. Don't like, don't read.

Aslaug was not a normal child.

She had known that from the very beginning. It started with her ‘imaginary friend,’ as her nanny called it. He was always talking to her and she could talk to him aloud or in her mind. He sometimes made her move without her consent, and sometimes he did things that got her into trouble.

‘ _ He’s dangerous. _ ’

‘ **_No, he’s not,_ ** ’ Aslaug protested.

‘ _ I wonder if he has anything valuable on him _ .’

Her imaginary friend liked to steal things that seemed valuable and he was also very aggressive when he didn’t get his way. He threw objects at those he didn’t like, objects hurled from an invisible source; he made her afraid and skeptical of those he felt she shouldn’t be associated with. Aslaug was far from helpless though. She fought off her imaginary friend when she realized he was being troublesome. She could suppress him and release him when she so chose, and sometimes she did need his help with fights. Sometimes she did agree with him and found joy in harming others. Then, she pulled herself back and her guilt and conscious returned to give her a punch of dread for when her uncle found out.

Aslaug loved her uncle. He had taken her in after something happened to her parents - something that he promised he would explain when she grew older.

‘ _ Don’t trust him _ ,’ her imaginary friend warned.

She ignored him. Aslaug’s uncle was a wise man who always looked after her, keeping her from going out of control while also encouraging her to be who she was rather than scolding her for things that her imaginary friend was responsible for. She looked up to him, she didn’t care that she didn’t know everything about him.

Aslaug lived in her uncle’s mansion all her life. She always liked going outside, running as far away as she could, but she always returned home eventually. Though her uncle was hesitant about it, Aslaug grew up learning how to fight and working out to become as strong as the boys around her. She had a private tutor for her education, but she had to go to playdates with other nobles along with her uncle’s daughter and son - Aslaug’s cousins who were more like her brother and sister. She had another cousin on the way, but for now she had a baby brother and a sister two years younger than her and two years older than their baby brother.

Many people mistook Aslaug for her uncle’s eldest child, and often that made the adults judge her every move. She didn’t like being expected to do things, but even when they learned she wasn’t her uncle’s child, they always gave her an odd glance before changing the subject that she should be setting a proper role model for her sister, her brother, and her sibling-to-be. Aslaug had a feeling there was something else they were thinking about when they heard she wasn’t her uncle’s child, and yet she couldn’t find any direct answers just by asking. No one took a little girl seriously, and her uncle was determined to keep things a secret, obviously.

Aslaug was said to have an…explosive personality. She was quick to temper, and she got what she wanted or everyone in a ten-meter radius would know her wrath - quite literally. Her uncle tried to hide it, but when Aslaug got pissed off, she allowed her urges to get the best of her and listened to the voice inside her head telling her to get revenge. Her imaginary friend would say he would help her, lifting objects within a certain range and even being able to slice through things within that range. The range started small at a couple meters, but as Aslaug grew and her tempers became greater and greater, she ended up being able to use her imaginary friend’s power and her range expanded to ten meters by the time she was ten years old. Her imaginary friend was a separate mind from her since Aslaug could lift things she concentrated on while her imaginary friend acted independently. Aslaug got exhausted from her powers at first, but she wanted to make sure that no one ever saw her as weak, so she worked her powers and her body alike in her free time.

On top of that, Aslaug could accidentally activate invincibility, preventing her from feeling any pain. This skill could be useful when she was fighting, but it could also have the adverse effect of pissing her off. She liked feeling pain, the sting of being alive and surviving the harsh circumstances. She quickly taught herself how to turn the invincibility off at will, while at the same time she learned to turn it in within microseconds so that if ever she needed it, she could have it as a quick reaction. So far, there had been nothing that could harm her, internally or externally, when she activated her invincibility. She wanted to keep working to test the limits of her invincibility, but at the same time she wanted to build up her collection of scars. She found scars beautiful, and though her uncle protested, she enjoyed making those around her afraid when they say the destruction she went through with glee.

Despite her occasional brutal nature, academics were very important to Aslaug. Studies were something she took seriously, but her imaginary friend less so. He was always trying to distract her and whined to her when she was trying to work. She wanted to make sure she was smarter than everyone else and so no one ever knew more than her. Her imaginary friend said that was impossible, but that didn’t stop Aslaug from accumulating all the wisdom she could.

“Get out of my sight, little boy,” Aslaug growled. Ironically, the boy she had just beat up had been at least twice her size and was the leader of an entire gang of boys. “And if I ever see you again, you’re a dead man.  _ Especially _ if you catch me when I’m pissed off - or worse, when you yourself piss me off.”

The entire gang had run.

Aslaug enjoyed hanging out in the slums of the city where the noble families dare not tread. The middle and lower-class citizens were always more fun. She gained a bit of a bad reputation. Some people thought she was a spoiled brat for presiding over the weaker kids, but Aslaug made sure to prove that she hated being in a noble family and she had gained her strength on her own. Her imaginary friend always liked to help her and encouraged her violence, but Aslaug always had a bit of pity left in her and refrained from going too far, no matter how her imaginary friend pushed her.

Aslaug was always confused about her emotions. It was exhausting keeping her imaginary friend’s urges in check. Sometimes she did wonder why she resisted him, but she just figured it was because getting in unnecessary trouble might attract the wrong attention. Then again, she and her imaginary friend both did want to find some challenges.

Aslaug faced more than just her imaginary friend, of course. She learned that she could do something no one else could: understand most animals that she came into contact with. No, the birds and the bees didn’t speak English to her or anything, but she often understood the messages they were trying to send. She just had a knack for guessing right. Some called her imaginary and delusional, and as a child that could be excused, perhaps. She once suspected that the reason a bird had attacked one of her visiting friends was because the bird had something to protect - babies maybe. It had felt like nothing but a daydream, a hypothetical fantasy, but in the end one of the adults had said that she’d been right and there was a bird’s nest nearby where the attack happened. Aslaug had shrugged it off, but next time she had fed a squirrel some food because she had just known it was hungry, and she felt its gratitude without hearing any real words. Maybe it  _ was _ just her imagination, but she had never been wrong before. Of course, that was just a small little quirk, nothing special, nothing supernaturally powerful. She certainly didn’t want to make it seem like she was some sort of damsel princess who needed to show kindness to other animals so that they would fight her battles for her. Nothing that she sometimes didn’t enjoy the quiet of peaceful resolutions. But she much more enjoyed a fight.

Aslaug had her first blackout when she was eleven. She had been traveling in the more dangerous areas of the slums, enjoying herself after a few fights. She had met some other supernaturals today. Her powers had always been chalked up to the gods and such, but it wasn’t like there weren’t other rare cases with blessed or cursed children or even just empowered by some kind of rare magical item such as a powerful sword or a magic shield or an enchanted gemstone. She had faced just a few so-called heroes who had thought she was some kind of danger to the city and had tried to kill her. Dumb shits didn’t know what they were doing, just rookies with no experience trying to explore a world they didn’t understand.

Aslaug rubbed her eyes. It was getting late. She was sure it had passed the middle of the night already. Her imaginary friend always exhausted her, but she hadn’t had food in a while. She donated a lot of gold to the slums and the bazaar since she had money to waste and she liked the gross food of the slums. After growing up on nothing but posh food that made her and her imaginary friend want to gag, they both found the raw meat delicious in particular. Some said that wasn’t healthy for her. Aslaug often gave them a middle finger.

She finished some kind of meat on a stick - she didn’t care what it was, but it was good - and twirled the sharp stick between her fingers as she walked. No one was awake at that hour, not anymore. She enjoyed the quiet. Even her imaginary friend seemed to be napping at that time. Maybe he’d fallen asleep from the serene atmosphere as well.

“Hey little girl. What’s a sweetie like you doing out here at this hour?”

Aslaug used her stick to pick some meat from her teeth and then ate it. “You talking to me?”

Aslaug couldn’t tell if she was excited to hit puberty and for her voice to deepen. She wanted to sound more intimidating, but at the same time she loved it when she was underestimated when she could activate her high-pitched, sweet, squished, baby voice and convince her enemies she was just a little girl.

“Yeah. You wanna come home with us, little one? We promise we’ll give you a nice night.”

Aslaug recognized the lecherous tone in his voice. Three men, idiots. She’d been warned about unsavory men by her uncle and her tutor and her nanny and such, but rarely ever did Aslaug face troubles because her imaginary friend or she herself could kick any man’s ass without even lifting a finger with their powers. Aslaug wasn’t sure if it was planned or not, but her imaginary friend did not respond when she told him he was free to kill. Often her imaginary friend’s bloodlust was sated and kept in check because Aslaug let him loose on those who deserved some retribution and the world would be better off without them.

Perhaps it was because her imaginary friend was genuinely asleep inside her, perhaps he was toying with her, perhaps he had done it on purpose. Aslaug faced fear that night that she hadn’t felt in her entire life. Because she didn’t have the voice in her head, she felt like she’d lost a piece of herself for just that night, a small, subtle difference, but enough that she couldn’t use her power. She was pissed off though, and helplessness only made her more frustrated. After all her preparations and planning and effort, she was reduced to a weak little girl just like every other little girl her age. She wasn’t like every other girl; she would prove it. She didn’t need help, she wasn’t just a toy to be played with by any adult who thought they knew better than her, and she didn’t care if she had to tear someone’s throat out with her bare teeth to prove it.

So that’s what she did.

She feigned paralysis from fear, she nearly let the men do what they pleased, and then she struck. She bit the first man’s wrist and tore at his forearms where she knew he had a lot of veins. He released her with a scream, and while they were distracted, she kicked the other in the jaw with everything her small foot could muster. She didn’t feel any pain as she struck hard enough to shatter her own foot but instead snapped the second man’s jaw. She had her right arm and her legs free, so she had the mobility to lunge right at the man who had been containing her left arm - now loosening his grip from shock at what happened to his comrades.

Aslaug remembered tearing into his throat, biting down into the soft flesh as her teeth sharpened to become strong enough to rip muscle from bone. After that, things became blurry. After the fact, she would mostly remember that first bite into the man’s neck - the blood pooling in her mouth as her tongue drank up the satisfying tang, the delicious feeling of her teeth easily puncturing flesh, and the feeling of the man’s terror surging through her as she relished his last moments living in fear.

Her imaginary friend later explained he had taken care of everything, washing her clean of any evidence of that night. She had woken up soaking wet in her room and had just gone back to sleep, deciding she’d deal with it later.

Her imaginary friend would do it again, take over everything when Aslaug lost all control. She was accused of things she genuinely didn’t remember, and while there were those very adept at seeing through lies, there was often never proof left to fully accuse her. Her other half was very thorough.

Aslaug quickly became isolated with her destructive personality warding off any potential friends. There were some who wanted to be her friend to avoid getting on her bad side and to be known as Aslaug’s friend to ward off any potential aggressors attempting to challenge them, but Aslaug knew it was all selfish. Some people would use Aslaug’s name to intimidate innocents, and Aslaug personally didn’t believe in harming or challenging those who hadn’t crossed her or didn’t deserve it. No matter how much her imaginary friend pushed, she wouldn’t allow him to hurt those who didn’t have a reason to be taught a lesson.

Aslaug grew up faster than most children. She had a rapid growth spurt around her 13 th birthday and easily looked 18. She was taller than most girls both her age and fully grown. She was as tall as her uncle and she was slowly overtaking him. The man was getting old and many assumed Aslaug would be taking over his position at the head of the house. There were some cultures that women were only useful for being married off, but the majority of societies valued a woman’s power even without a husband beside her. Women - even ones that weren’t as manly and chaotic as Aslaug - were known as equally or even more important than men. They were intelligent, cunning, unpredictable, and often valued if a man wanted to get anywhere in the world. If a powerful woman took interest in you, you knew you were just as blessed as any wealthy man.

Aslaug had no intentions of becoming the head of her family. She didn’t want that kind of responsibility and though she didn’t  _ need _ to get married, she knew she’d be pushed to be wed once she became head of a house. Her little sister was still a regular, small, child, and so she could hardly take over in Aslaug’s place should something happen to their uncle. She made sure that she watched him carefully to make sure the old man didn’t drop dead and screw her over in her plans to remain a free spirit. Aslaug wasn’t going to risk being tied down, and despite her unwavering attitude, she didn’t like having to be asked to do something and having to deny someone something. Overall, she liked to avoid being questioned in the first place.

“Fáfnir…”

‘ _ Finally, _ ’ her imaginary friend murmured.

“That’s his name,” she agreed.

She didn’t need a verbal communication. She just knew. She and Fáfnir were always together inside her, sharing feelings and emotions and though they often conflicted, it didn’t make either of them immune to each other’s thoughts and feelings, even if Fáfnir didn’t understand Aslaug’s sympathies and Aslaug didn’t understand Fáfnir’s constant paranoia and obsessiveness.

When Aslaug could finally put a name to her imaginary friend, she started to get curious as to why when she told her tutor about it the woman seemed on edge. After Fáfnir showed Aslaug what book in the library to investigate, she found out that Fáfnir was a dragon. Not much was really gathered about him, but he was somehow important. The dragon part explained Fáfnir’s temper and inhuman nature, but she still didn’t understand why no one would answer her about Fáfnir in her home. Her uncle had probably forbidden it for his stupid ‘protective’ reasons, so, she decided to seek out answers outside of her home.

The city was the best place for Aslaug to find her answers. In this world, storytellers were valued for both entertainment purposes and myth-seekers. Stories like that of Fáfnir were bound to be told, even if it led to nothing but a wild goose chase. A tale such as Beowulf was still famous from farther north, and often the only way to learn of a tale was through oral tradition. Aslaug and her friends had laughed over the idea that they should write down the stories, but the bards would probably wreak havoc when they no longer had jobs.

Aslaug went down into a tavern called “ _ The Hanged Raven _ ” where only the roughest would ever survive. The first time Aslaug came here, she had known the place was only for the rowdiest. Her first day she had gotten into a barfight and kicked the asses of at least a dozen men. She had quickly been welcomed afterwards. Apparently barfights were common and even expected of visitors, since all of the furniture was reinforced and there was an entire backroom of backup furniture just in case. Money was far from an issue since only crooks ever came here with plenty of coin to spend or else they were thrown out without a second chance. It was also a great place for gambling money, secrets, and stories.

“I want to know about the dragon Fáfnir,” Aslaug declared.

Like most dragons, Fáfnir was known to have a large treasure under his protection and was a bit of a hoarder. Aslaug rolled her eyes and realized that was why Fáfnir was so attracted to anything valuable and shiny. She should’ve guessed when she’d learned he was a dragon. She also learned about the man who managed to slay the dragon, best known as Lord Siegfried. Now  _ that _ was a tale she already knew. She returned to her home and locked herself in the library as she researched the tale of Lord Siegfried. She had once read it before, but she didn’t remember the true details.

Among the long tale of Siegfried’s background, Aslaug found he was also called Sigurd, Sigvǫrðr, and many other names depending on where in the land the language depicted his name. Best known for slaying the dragon Fáfnir and being cursed by the ring Andvaranaut. That is the newest information Aslaug could find documented in their library. Everything else went back into the mythos of the dragon Fáfnir, and the only reason the man was even documented at all was because Fáfnir’s slaying was monumental enough to be considered document worthy.

Fáfnir’s family had been given a treasure from Odin and Loki and Hœnir - Aslaug remembered him as maybe one of the gods that helped Odin create humans? For some reason, the gods had wronged Fáfnir’s family and therefore repaid them with wealth. Fáfnir had killed his father to take all the gold for himself and ventured into the wilderness to keep his fortune because he had become so ill-natured and greedy. He somehow transformed into a serpent or a dragon - sources disagree because no one who came into contact with him ever came out alive. He breathed poison into the land around him so no one would go near him and his treasure, wreaking terror in the hearts of the people. Then, Fáfnir’s brother, who both wanted the treasure and the glory of slaying a dragon so powerful as Fáfnir and reaping the benefits, plotted his revenge by instructing Sigurd - Aslaug’s father - to come up with a cunning plan to defeat the dragon.

‘ _ I  _ think _ he was your father. It’s hard to keep track, really, considering the last time we met he plunged a blade through my heart _ .’

‘ **_Gee, that’s_ ** **super** **_helpful, Fáfnir._ ** ’

Sigurd, like most men of this world, had been born into a very destructive life, where it was near impossible to have a family that went beyond your parents. Always there was some kind of family killings or revenge plots going on somehow. Sigurd was known for being a descendant of a family of greatness, prophecies and stuff. He was known as an almost invincible warrior, and so Fáfnir’s brother had conscripted him to kill Fáfnir. With a little advice from Odin, Sigurd did just that, collecting Fáfnir’s blood and carving out his heart. Before Fáfnir died, he warned Sigurd that all who held his treasure were fated to die, but Sigurd had simply said that all men must die one day anyway, and it is the dream of many men to be wealthy until that dying day, so he would take the gold without fear. What Sigurd and Fáfnir both did not deduce was that the treasure - particularly the ring Andvaranaut - cursed the wearer to not only die, but to ruin their lives in the worst way possible and die in the most painful of ways. Even Loki himself had feared the curse of this ring, which was why he gave it away so eagerly when he had a debt to pay. Fáfnir’s brother planned to kill Sigurd once he had cooked Fáfnir’s heart to be eaten, but Sigurd tasted Fáfnir’s blood while cooking the heart and gained the speech of birds, learning of the plot to kill him and instead killed Fáfnir’s brother instead, eating some of the heart and saving the rest for later when he would marry.

“Lady Aslaug?”

Aslaug looked up from the book of myths to the doors of the library. “What is it?”

“Your uncle wishes to speak with you. Right now, my lady.”

She sighed and stuck a bookmark into place, closing the book and hiding it in a small alcove filled with books. She didn’t want anyone else taking the book before she could finish it, and there was no way she’d remember where it was supposed to be placed. The library staff would have it in their inventory for weeks if she let them attempt to sort it out. They were slow to reorganized checked out books. There was one book that Aslaug had found, read, and returned, and it  _ still _ hadn’t been replaced to its proper place over a year later.

“You must be married, Aslaug,” her uncle insisted. “There is no more getting around it. You’ve nearly reached twenty years of age without any interests, and I’ve allowed it for as long as I could.”

“For the hundredth time, I don’t  _ want _ to be married. Who says that I  _ need _ to be? I’m not the head of this house and I don’t want a husband. It shouldn’t even matter! Just because it’s tradition doesn’t mean I need to follow it out of peer pressure.”

It wasn’t the first nor would it be the last time Aslaug and her uncle argued about her fate. There were certain things that were to be expected of her because she was raised by a noble, and that included marriage. She wasn’t expected to be simply a housewife and follow her husband’s every command, her uncle assured her, but she wasn’t sure that being tied down at all was in her best interests. Any husband would just be an annoyance. She didn’t tie herself down with many  _ friends _ , let alone lovers. She has those she’s fond of, but she wouldn’t be too down if she lost them.

Relationships weren’t easy when she had a constant voice in her head that she talked to and dealt with on a constant basis with no breaks. She barely had enough sanity to keep  _ one _ person (person- _ ish _ ) in her life at every moment of her existence. She didn’t have the time or the effort for someone with an actual body to bother her rather than just in her head. If Fáfnir had a body and she had to physically interact with him, Aslaug had a feeling she’d chuck herself off the nearest cliff and hope she could have a quick death.

“At the very least, look for suitors who match your interests,” her uncle urged. “There must be a man who will marry and fail to impede your daily routine.”

She sighed. “I’ll try, uncle, but I won’t make  _ any _ promises. If such a man could possibly exist, it’s highly unlikely we’d ever meet.”

She agreed to at the very least look at other men during the parties she attended rather than hiding in her usual corner warding off guests attempting to make contact with her just by glaring at them. She observed how men interacted with others - elders, men, women, children, the servants, etc. Many of them were generic, put together, respectful. Some looked just as tired of social interaction as Aslaug felt on a constant basis, but then again, they were still making an effort to try. Others were pure assholes flaunting their social skills and using their family name to get their way in the world.

‘ _ We should vaporize that one _ ,’ Fáfnir growled.

“No vaporizing,” Aslaug chided under her breath, making sure no one could see her speak. It was far easier to speak to Fáfnir out loud because in her own mind Fáfnir was stronger. A mind was a complex thing, and Aslaug would need more practice before she was ready to speak with Fáfnir in her mind on equal terms. “In a public setting,” she added.

‘ _ No one will know it’s you if you use your power. _ ’

Fáfnir and Aslaug had recently been working on concentrating Aslaug’s more deadly power with a 13-meter radius to be more precise than just a destructive force. Aslaug was learning to lift objects within her range without moving the rest of her body. What she liked to do was imagine an extra pair or so of hands that lifted and moved things as she commanded, feeling the objects in range that she had control over. Fáfnir, on the other hand, wanted to use the power more destructively. He could slice anything within the range, any number of times, no resistance no matter what material his target was made of. He could instantaneously chop a man to a million pieces from 10 meters away and still have 3 meters left in the radius. That’s why Fáfnir was becoming harder and harder to control, and why Aslaug once again didn’t want to even consider marrying someone and having to confess Fáfnir and his odd circumstances. She also didn’t want anyone innocent to get hurt. Anyone Aslaug managed to care about, she knew Fáfnir would purposefully target just for the sake of irking her.

“We’re  _ not _ killing anyone,” she muttered, taking a sip of her alcoholic drink.

Alcohol, like most poisons, went through her extremely quickly because her metabolism and immune system were apparently also hyped up with power beyond any of her peers. Her healing factor was related to her invincibility, meaning she had learned to separately turn it on and off for the sake of gaining a few scars.

Most of her events went like that, arguing around with Fáfnir and waiting out the night as best she could. Hell, most of her entire life went like that when she was home. That’s why she left so often, but her uncle and the staff always knew that she’d be back.

“I’ve arranged for you to meet someone,” her uncle announced. “Now before you protest-” Aslaug’s mouth had already been open with an argument forming between her lips “-he has agreed to do this only in title and hopes that you’ll understand he is just as reluctant for marriage as you. Your lives can and will remain relatively the same except you will have to interact on occasions in public. He’s not intrusive, but he’s a hard worker, and he trusts that you are the same.”

Aslaug scoffed. “Like  _ anyone _ around here doesn’t know about my reputation and handling myself.”

“Just give him a try, Aslaug. He’s a good candidate for the kind of marriage you and he desire - one with very few strings attached. It will also end the hunt for a suitor as well.”

Aslaug couldn’t deny it’d be a good bargain if this guy was truly what her uncle was saying. A man who’d leave her alone most of the time and who’d be just as uncomfortable in social settings as her. They’d get the whole marriage thing out of the way and maybe even get along with each other by the prospect of rarely interacting. She just hoped he wasn’t a dick about when they  _ did _ have to interact. She knew the aristocratic men who were all work and no play, who were inhumane in their efficiency and boring as ever. She’d accept a neutral man, but if he was a jackass, she might just let Fáfnir free to kick his ass. Aslaug knew she was basically describing the male version of herself, but hey, some psychologist doctor peeps said that the person you hate the most is often yourself. Aslaug didn’t know if that applied to her when she technically had two personalities, but she found that mostly to be true in her case.

As Aslaug prepared to meet her potential husband, she found herself pacing. She couldn’t quite tell why. She’d known about their meeting for days now, and she’d pushed it to the back of her mind up until the few hours she had until he and his entourage arrived. She began to speculate about what he’d be like for her uncle to be so insistent that he was the closest thing she’d get to a perfect match. It wasn’t so much that she had butterflies in her stomach, but she was disturbed by the  _ lack _ of butterflies in her stomach. Maybe Fáfnir in there ate them or something.

Speaking of Fáfnir, he was hardly being of any use.

‘ _ If he’s ugly, can I kill him? _ ’

“Stop it,” Aslaug muttered.

‘ _ Stop what? _ ’ Fáfnir asked innocently, but his tone betrayed his true feelings.

Aslaug sighed and ran her fingers through her hair one more time. The servants were rightfully terrified of Aslaug and had been since she was a child. Her nursemaid had been positively traumatized when Aslaug was an infant, she was told. Because she was already anti-social and she had Fáfnir to deal with, she often preferred to be alone, and so she had learned to both dress herself and do her hair and makeup should it be necessary. She was already in a hand-made dress that she’d had to put together because she grew so fast and she’d learned to make clothes that fit her body-type. It was built ready for combat should it be necessary. She put her hair into a braid to keep her hands and mind distracted. Fáfnir thought her hair was stupid and unnecessary and encouraged her to cut it off, but Aslaug enjoyed having it to keep her mind distracted at times. Sometimes people liked to pull on it during brawls, but she made sure to keep it tied up and it never became a real problem since if they were close enough to grab her hair, they were close enough to get punched.

Because the braiding had been so easy, Aslaug began weaving flowers into her hair just to pass the time. Why was she so on edge? Usually this kind of feeling came when she had a bad feeling about a fight - which wasn’t very often. It only came when she was doing something for the first time and worried she got something wrong. Even then, Fáfnir usually encouraged her to punch her way out of any situation, so anxiety was a rare thing. Perhaps it was because this wasn’t a situation she could punch her way out of. She just wanted things to be over with. Pleasing other human beings was stressful, to be sure. Her uncle and the servants were just used to her, and even then, she wasn’t technically pleasing them, only tolerating them, and making sure Fáfnir didn’t kill them.

‘ _ Perhaps we should eat him if things don’t work out _ .’

“No.”

‘ _ Are you afraid he won’t like you? _ ’

“Of  _ course _ he won’t like me. There’s very little to like, unless you want a bodyguard intimidation factor from a wife.”

‘ _ You’re right, perhaps. Abandoned from birth, your uncle’s eager to get rid of you. No one truly values you, Aslaug. Not like I do _ .’

Aslaug pushed Fáfnir down forcefully and followed her servant out of her room and down the hall. It wasn’t their fault that Aslaug was born into this world how she was. Her parents abandoned her and ended up dying, and now she was being raised by a noble man who just wanted to help her. Unfortunately, existing itself meant she had responsibilities if she wanted to get by in this unfair world. Meaning she needed to get married. Meaning all her hopes of freedom could be sucked away from her in an instant. And Fáfnir didn’t like being contained. Honestly, neither did Aslaug.

Though she’d been to the dining hall on countless occasions, Aslaug found herself nervous to push open the familiar doors. She forced herself to go forward and just get this meeting over with. If she said the world to her uncle after the meeting was over, she’d never have to see this guy again. If she found him acceptable for the marriage, they’d meet each other a couple more times and put up a front of dating before they’d marry.

Only two people were in the large dining hall. Aslaug waved off her servant who bowed and left with the doors banging closed behind her. After all, Aslaug didn’t need a bodyguard to protect her from threats. She was her own bodyguard and had been since she was five.

She walked over to the table and took a seat across from her guest. The head of the table was for the head of the house - two seats for her uncle and his wife. Aslaug and her guest sat on either side of the two seats at the head of the table. Her guest had a servant standing beside him at attention, staring at Aslaug with trepidation. He wasn’t overconfident, but he wasn’t giving away any - or very many, at least - signs of fear. Her guest himself was dressed formally, but the look on his face contradicted the warm tone he should have been holding for their meeting. Aslaug didn’t smile, but then again, she rarely looked very glum either. This boy looked like he’d been chosen to walk into a den of snakes.

He looked younger than Aslaug had expected. No facial hair, but he had clearly surpassed puberty, so he was just well shaven. Hair was brushed back, perhaps a quick attempt at fancying him up, though clearly not done by himself. Perhaps his servant, perhaps his parent who arranged this. He looked up at Aslaug and then down to the table in front of him, as though wishing there were food there so that he’d have something to do.

“Let’s make things quick,” Aslaug said, taking pity on the poor creature. “Why do you think this will work out between us?”

In the large dining hall, her voice echoed against the dead silence that had pervaded the air a moment ago.

Her guest jumped. “I…well you see…we both…” He pursed his lips. “This isn’t coming out right. Ugh, I…where do I start-?”

“From the beginning.”

He shrunk down in his seat as though thoroughly chastised. His servant put a reassuring hand on his shoulder and nodded for him to go ahead. He nodded back to the man standing beside him and sat up straight again.

“My name is Finnegan. I…well, honestly, the only reason I offered to come here is because I heard that if you were to ever get married, there would be no love involved.”

“That’s true. Why would you no want love though? Aren’t most men eager for a wife and children?”

“I…not me.”

The poor thing couldn’t possibly be in Aslaug’s position, closed off from the rest of the world around him. He was too shy and meager and innocent for that.

“You love someone you cannot love then,” she deduced. “And you need me as a stand in so that we have married officially but you can still have your lover without any concern over my feelings.” Both Finnegan and his servant seemed surprised by her quick assessment. She shrugged. “It was the only logical response. I’ll accept those terms, now that I know who you are. Only, however, if you prove to me your love is true, and that you can both handle me and my household.”

“In…what way do you mean that?”

Aslaug used her power and grabbed a fork from across the table at the other end - opposite of where her uncle and his wife would sit. She flung it towards Finnegan, watching his reaction time. Both he and his servant turned their attention towards the small projectile at the same time, much faster than Aslaug predicted. Finnegan’s servant pulled him out of the way and reached to either grab the projectile, or in the worst-case-scenario let it hit him rather than his master. Finnegan, meanwhile, seemed to know his servant’s intentions and knew he was protected. He instead reached for the knife at his empty table set and flung it underhand towards Aslaug with pinpoint accuracy. She stopped it easily with her power, letting it hover right in front of her forehead, aimed well and true.

Aslaug couldn’t help her smile. Both offensive and defensive reactions, automatic, teamwork, protectiveness from both parties. They clearly knew and fought together well even in unfavorable circumstances.

“I like you two. I like you both very much. Clearly, you’ve traveled a long way to get here, because no one I’ve ever met has been through enough to have your level of experience.”

Both of them seemed to snap out of dazes, surprised by her words.

“What are you?” Finnegan asked, his aggressive demeanor instantly gone and replaced by his regular meekness.

Aslaug couldn’t tell if it was meant to be a façade or if he was just genuinely so bi-polar. “It’s a long story, most of it even  _ I _ don’t know. If you’re willing to listen, I’ll tell you. But first, tell me about this lover of yours. I won’t accept someone who could potentially be a threat to you or I if we’re to continue this arrangement.”

“Oh, um…right.”

Finnegan carefully sat down, his servant tense at his side as he allowed them to resume their conversation. The fork Aslaug had thrown was still in his hand. Aslaug remembered the knife she was holding at her forehead and let it drop gently to the table, an equal distance between the two of them.

“You see…how can I say…the thing is…”

He looked up to his servant and waved his arms, mouthing words he couldn’t seem to fully form as he desperately asked for help. His servant simply nodded for him to tell Aslaug the flat-out truth. Perhaps about the secret behind his forbidden lover. There were so many options; Aslaug was going through them all in her head.

“Ah! Your servant!” she realized.

Both men jumped at her excited outburst. Admittedly, she rarely raised her voice ever, let alone with any enthusiasm to speak of.

“Say no more. I shall make the arrangements. My uncle suggested a dating period. Would a month be proper, do you think?”

Finnegan blinked. “I…did you…um…yeah, that’d be fine.”

“Excellent. I’ll arrange occasional meetings for us to mimic a relationship. If you’re from far away, please, feel free to request lodging in our household. We can integrate it into the story of our meeting. Your servant will, of course, stay with you at all times. If the need should arise, we will buy a separate house under the guise of our family unit so that you may pursue your relationship freely and I can have a home mostly to myself. I have brothers and sisters - cousins, in reality, but I refer to them as kin nonetheless - who will continue my uncle’s line, so there is no need for children. Do any know of your relationship? I must know if I can allow the knowledge to be passed on to my uncle. If not, I will make sure none pry the knowledge from my grasp.”

Both men seemed surprised by Aslaug’s shift in tone.

“How did you…?” Finnegan began.

Aslaug chuckled. “I’m very observant. In any case, I believe this arrangement will work out nicely.”

Finnegan’s servant chuckled. “I  _ told _ you there was no reason to be so nervous.”

“She nearly killed us with a fork!” Finnegan protested. “Besides, did you  _ see _ her when she first came in? And what if she  _ hadn’t _ been so forgiving, huh? A million things could’ve gone wrong!”

His servant just pet the sulking Finnegan on the head, running his fingers through the boy’s short, curly red hair fondly. “What matters is we were lucky enough to have you, Lady Aslaug, be so supportive.”

“Yes, thank you,” Finnegan said. “Oh, and this is Fionn, by the way.”

He bowed. “If we’re sharing tales, I’m not really a servant of his family,” Fionn admitted. “I haven’t been one for long, anyway.”

“He’s actually a prince,” Finnegan said eagerly. “But he ran away because he’s got this terrible family. Our meeting wasn’t very formal…” Fionn shared a fond smile. “…but in the end, here we are. If you’re willing to help us out of this…tough situation, we’ll find a way to repay you in full. I promise.”

Aslaug waved her hand. “Just help me with all the details of our fake marriage and you will owe no such debt. The sooner we can fade into obscurity, the better.”

“Agreed,” Fionn sighed.

Aslaug finally got a good look at the servant and realized he was much more experienced than she’d first assumed. He had a warrior’s build, he had an ancient wisdom in his eyes, and something that perhaps wasn’t entirely human, just like Aslaug. While Aslaug had grown up in a relatively good situation in comparison to any other lifestyle she could’ve had, she knew that Fionn had probably gotten much worse, survived something that he perhaps wasn’t prepared for. Aslaug had never faced a challenge she was truly afraid of. Perhaps the first time Fáfnir had taken over, but even then, Aslaug never had anything happen. Her assailants had died painfully, she had come out without a scratch. Abuse was something she knew existed but never experienced herself. She had made orphans out of many kids who had terrible parental figures.

“So,” Aslaug announced. “Shall we begin?”


	2. Fake Marriage

Everything went smoothly enough.

Aslaug and Finnegan went on public outings together with Fionn as their ‘bodyguard.’ Apparently, Fionn was from one of the fey kingdoms and had some faerie blood in him. That was as much as he had told Finnegan, but though Finnegan suspected there was more to the tale, he didn’t press the matter. All he knew was that Fionn had gone through some tough times and had run away. Finnegan had his own troubles with expectations from his family, and so the two of them had met and bonded. Finnegan agreed to help hide Fionn’s identity. With some fey magic, Fionn disguised his unnatural hair color and his pointed ears. His facial features were still pretty sharpened, but it could be excused as a trick of the light. The rest of his body was covered by his clothes, but there was still an air of superiority in the way that he walked and held himself. Being a servant was a good excuse for his formal mannerisms.

“My parents have always expected a lot of me,” Finnegan admitted. “My twin sister, Merida, she’s great at everything - girly stuff, manly stuff, everything. All I can really do is play instruments. I love music. But it’s not exactly a lucrative career when I’m useless at pretty much everything else.”

“But you’re an excellent fighter. Your reaction times are ideal when in comparison to even a fey.”

“She is right, Finnegan,” Fionn said. “Do not partake in such deprecation.”

Finnegan smiled. “Well, I was hopeless before Fionn came along and helped teach me to fight.”

“He was fighting as he was taught and expected to, but battle is about uncertainty. Finnegan needed to learn to fight by his own rhythm. An unpredictable battle style is ideal in the worse of situations. He fights like a fey.”

“Fionn says so, but I’ve never actually gone up against anything non-human or been in a real fight. All I’ve got going for me is my music, a little fighting, and maybe this marriage, if it gets me anywhere. I just want my parents to forget about me and all their stupid expectations. They wanted me to marry my best friend Selina, but we’re more like friends - family, even. I’ve grown up with her all my life, she’s more a sister than anything else.”

“Are you not attracted only to men?” Aslaug asked. “Not that I’m well-versed on relationships between men.”

He shrugged. “Neither am I, honestly. I’ve liked women before; I just never saw any of them as potential lovers. Love is too complex for me, no one out there will ever understand me. Everyone’s just about expectations. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do with a wife. Am I supposed to look after her every need?”

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “I think so. A woman is valued when she is powerful, of course, but powerful women go with powerful men. I don’t think I could tolerate a man as stubborn as I was. A normal powerful woman would be powerful  _ politically _ speaking. She’d probably be just as pushy as your parents. I’m lucky that my uncle is a little more lenient. That, or he’s afraid of me. One way or another.”

“I think your uncle was desperate. He doesn’t want you on the radar anymore than you do. When I came to him saying that I wanted a marriage that didn’t involve real love, something more political than anything else, he took one look at me and looked as though I was his only hope.”

Aslaug nodded. “Well, I’m glad it was you rather than some jackass. Not that I couldn’t handle a jackass husband who doesn’t want anything to do with me, but there’s a lot less acting to do when you and I can still be friends.”

“I’m just glad you’re okay with Fionn and…everything about him. The fey are always very…controversial.”

Aslaug nodded. “I’ve read about them. Unable to lie, but in return they are either brutally honest or extremely cryptic.”

Finnegan perked up excitedly. “Oh, we were discussing that! I’m currently teaching Fionn how to talk like a human. Since humans have so much slang and dialects, it’s kinda like another language, right? And so long as Fionn understands what he’s trying to say is true, he can say it. It’s kinda like if you were told your entire life that…” He reached down and plucked a piece of grass. “If you were told that this was called something like…I don’t know, milk. If you were told all your life that the string of syllables used to describe this material object was called ‘milk,’ then you’d be honest when you thought this was called ‘milk.’ Language is just a means of communication through which a certain species comes to an agreement.”

“And so, if you teach him the slang of humans, he can speak like a human to other fey and still be honest.”

Finnegan nodded. “Like sarcasm, right? If you raise certain parts of your words, then they can have a whole different meaning. Sarcasm itself is like a whole new language, and if Fionn can master it-”

“He can use his faerie heritage against others who have assumptions about him.”

Finnegan nodded eagerly.

“What an interesting concept. You’ve taught me much, Finnegan, and I didn’t even know I needed to be taught. I always value such creative thinking and bending the rules. Puzzles and knowledge are very fun for me to gather.”

“Have you ever faced a challenge you couldn’t meet?”

She thought. “No. Not really. There are frustrating moments in my life, but most of those are self-induced. My own stubbornness may perhaps be my greatest enemy.”

‘ **_Or Fáfnir’s at least,_ ** ’ Aslaug finished in her mind.

“That, and my own parentage,” she said aloud.

“Your parentage?”

Aslaug nodded. “I’ve lived with my uncle since I was a young girl, but I remember my mother and father vaguely being a part of my life. All I know is that they left me with my uncle for some reason. I’m not even sure he  _ is _ my uncle, but for all intense and purposes, he raised me all the same as family might. I’ve attempted to locate information through rumors and research, but my search was interrupted by this whole marriage business.”

“Well once things settle down you can finish up that research. We’d be happy to help.”

Aslaug waved her hand. “Oh, it’s fine. I’m sure I’ll have plenty of time in the future. Besides, we may not be romantically involved, but you’re the closest person I’ve ever had in my life. Really my only true friend, at the very least. I suppose it’s because you have your secrets, I have mine, and we’re living in a world full of expectations together.”

“And Fionn, of course.”

The fey was currently tying grass and flowers into some sort of configuration that Aslaug assumed was perhaps a flower crown. The three of them were out in an open field having a picnic together. It was completely devoid of any other human life, and so they were free to relax as they pleased. Though he had a warrior’s air around him, he was delicate and gentle with his weaving, his fingers moving fluid with many years of practice. Finnegan seemed mesmerized with the sight and Aslaug simply smiled at their dynamic.

“Either way, if I had to fake-marry anyone, I’m glad it’s you,” Aslaug said.

“Me too,” Finnegan said.

Solving the political matters were far more entertaining with Finnegan by her side. While Aslaug was more capable when it came to intelligence, Finnegan still wasn’t a slacker by any means. He had the drive to be helpful, even if he didn’t know how to do things. It was mostly when there were critical eyes on him that Finnegan began to make the most mistakes, hesitating and trying to be a proper example of what others wanted from him. When they were alone, Finnegan wasn’t afraid of making mistakes, and therefore he made very few, and even when he did, he corrected himself and didn’t even seem to realize or remember he’d made an error at all.

Aslaug watched as Finnegan and Fionn’s relationship developed. They’d already been through a lot together, but they still had their issues. Fionn had to learn how to be a proper servant, used to being royalty, yes, but he was more than capable of handling himself. Catering to another was something he needed to get used to, since he had always felt survival alone was how his life would proceed. Aslaug vouched for his slipups and assured other servants that Fionn was the one she wanted to stay with her and Finnegan most of the time.

Aslaug had walked in on them kissing more than once. The first time, all parties had been surprised, but Aslaug tried not to make a big deal about it and went on as normal. Finnegan had to ask her if she was really okay with his relationship and she had to assure him it was fine and that she was just happy that the two of them had found each other and things were going to work out. The next time Aslaug slipped in and out of the room quickly as she could. She wasn’t sure if they’d noticed her, but she thought they did but were still nervous of her reaction. The third time Aslaug casually sauntered into the room and sauntered out without much haste and she could sense that they barely cared she had come in. They were careful not to get caught by anyone other than Aslaug, and multiple times Aslaug had to scare someone away from the room to make sure that they weren’t spotted.

Aslaug felt an odd joy at having a secret between them, being a bodyguard to make sure that the two of them were happy together. It was unusual if she thought about it too hard, marrying a man who was in love with another man who also was both a fey and a servant in disguise, but really, Aslaug was apparently growing up with a dragon in her head. Nothing was too weird in this world that Aslaug couldn’t accept it as reality.

Speaking of which, Fáfnir seemed to be oddly quiet recently. Aslaug couldn’t tell if it was because she was actually happy and had someone else to talk to and he was jealous, or if she had just been able to ignore him because she was so distracted. Either way, her mental state felt lighter than ever. She found herself with a spring in her step as she planned the details of her wedding. To anyone else, it looked like she really  _ was _ in love with  _ someone _ anyway. But no. Aslaug was just happy that the annoying dragon in her head had finally shut up.

She had been wary of Fionn at first; she saw him as both an enigma as well as someone special, like her. Aslaug had grown up learning about all kinds of supernaturals - mostly as threats, sometimes just as children’s stories. The reality was there  _ were _ creatures out there that humanity was constantly fighting. There were gods and monsters, angels and demons, blessings and curses, and Aslaug was right in the middle of it all. Having someone outside of her human family was something rare, something she thought she’d never really have.

“My father is…how to explain?” Fionn wondered. “He is a king of darkness. He is not inherently evil;  _ I _ don’t believe so. But his nature is cruel. He is governed by a law dictating the survival of the fittest, and unfortunately it can be said that his power over such a domain as the fey give him arrogance and cruelty. I was born a child unwanted. I survived only on the warmth of my mother’s smile and grace. I had brothers who were kind and brothers who shared our father’s discord. My loved ones finally encouraged me to escape to be who I truly am.

“I was lost, I admit. Before I met Finnegan, I had nowhere I planned to go, no true goal. He was crying the first time I met him. I didn’t know how to react to a crying human. But I knew he was in pain, and so I attempted to ease it. He was very mystified by my appearance. Unlike most humans, he held no caution around me, no defensive nature expecting only lies of the worst kind: truths no one would dare to voice aloud. He simply reached up with beautiful wide eyes…”

Fionn gently placed his hand to his cheek, as though feeling a ghostly touch of the moment he was recalling.

“Humans are beautiful to the fey,” Fionn continued. “Our kind reach a point of agelessness. We are not immune to disease and death, but we could potentially stay the same in appearance for centuries. I am only fifty years of age by human standards, young by comparison to my kin. We value beauty, yes, and though humans might find us ethereal, to us it is nothing special. What we find beautiful are humans, any and all of them. The thing about beauty is it fades. What  _ we _ have, it does not fade with time, therefore we cannot  _ truly _ value it. Finnegan will fade, I have known that from the very beginning. And so, I will value his beauty as he values mine.”

Fionn released his light glamour effect and Aslaug almost thought a light had shone onto him. His beauty was almost hard to look at, his features were sharp and smooth, his hair was a glowing red like lava. Even as he frowned, Aslaug couldn’t help but admire him.

“Finnegan says I should not be ashamed of this form, for he finds it…he called it ‘staggering,’ I believe.”

Though Fionn’s voice was unchanged, Aslaug felt that it had become smoother. It was enticing, but there was an unintentional undertone of malice. Like the velvety voice of a murderer luring away his victim with honeyed words.

“I find my form repulsive,” Fionn continued. “A reminder of my race and the sins we commit in the name of survival.”

“Fionn…you shouldn’t be so misanthropic about it all. Trust me, I know things can be bad when you’re different, but you’ve got Finnegan now. You have a future. Whatever you look like, you’re you. That won’t change just because you look human, fey, or if you look like a damn lizard.”

Fionn smiled. His expression was now extremely influential - his smile warmed the entire room, his frown made it seem like the walls themselves would begin lamenting along with him.

“I sensed your aura upon our first meeting,” Fionn said. “You are truly powerful.”

She shrugged. “Yes, perhaps, but I have no idea what to do with such a power. And it  _ does _ come with its drawbacks.”

“You are strong enough to contain your power, its impulses and destructive nature. That is nothing to take lightly, Lady Aslaug. You are powerful in physical strength-” He reached out and put his smooth finger to her forehead “-and you are powerful within the mind. I feared for Finnegan’s safety before we met. When all I could sense was the malicious aura radiating from across the land, I warned Finnegan not to walk into such beast’s den. But the beast is contained by a gracious lady who has treated my love and myself with honor and respect. That is why I have come to thank you, Aslaug. As an ally, as a friend, perhaps as family.”

After that, Aslaug felt that having Finnegan and Fionn around was hardly the burden she thought marriage would be. She felt no romantic attraction to both of them, but she knew that their friendship was strong enough that she wouldn’t stand for anything or anyone that attempted to separate them from her.

“Okay, so here’s the thing,” Aslaug announced to Finnegan and Fionn. “We’re going to have to practice kissing for the ceremony.” She made a face. “Now, I don’t like this anymore than you do, but since you’re so experienced with your boyfriend, I’m gonna have to rely on you to teach me how this works.”

Finnegan sighed. “Wonderful.”

“It hardly seems ideal, yes,” Fionn agreed.

The fey had long since gotten past the point where he stated things like ‘That does not seem so wonderful as you put it, Finnegan.’ Sometimes having a fey around was amusing. Aslaug was proud of his progress. Even so, sometimes he looked for clarification to see if he had interpreted sarcasm correctly. The basic rule they’d told him was that if something was too absurd to be taken literally, it was most likely sarcasm. Aslaug found it surprising that Fionn had ever spoken as cryptically as the scriptures had said he would. Rumors about the fey were, as Fionn described it, atrocious despicable imitations of an already malicious race.

“You mean you’ve never kissed anyone?” Finnegan asked, resting his chin in his hand.

Aslaug shook her head. “Romance doesn’t come easy when you’ve grown up with a dragon in your brain.”

Aslaug had told the two of them about her condition, watering it down heavily. Especially since Fáfnir had become quieter, it made him seem like less of an influence than he truly had been.

“Beyond Fáfnir, I’ve just never felt anything close to attraction in my life.”

“Does that perhaps mean you’re asexual?”

Aslaug tapped her chin pensively. “No. I want love, I do. I’m just not sure about the kind of love that I want. Or if I’m ever gonna find it.”

Finnegan sighed, falling back to lay on the bed in Aslaug’s room. It was extremely comfortable, but it was pretty firm. The sheets were fluffy as could be, but the mattress itself might as well have been stone. Aslaug blamed Fáfnir for being so tough that she needed a hard surface to be comfortable on.

“Well…I suppose the only things I can tell you are to keep your jaw un-tense. Open your mouth just about this much.” He opened his lips about a centimeter and pointed to the open space. “Then tilt your head so your noses don’t bump. That happened a couple times with Fionn.”

“I was Finnegan’s first kiss,” the fey said proudly.

“The most chaste of kisses has no movement. Just touch lips. Sealing lips completely is the next step. Then tongues get involved, but we’re never getting that far, so there’s no need to go into it.”

“Why would you  _ ever _ want to share spit with someone?” Aslaug muttered.

“Only share spit with your loved ones.”

“They taste very good when you love them enough,” Fionn assured her.

Aslaug sighed and plopped back beside Finnegan on her bed. “Maybe I  _ am _ asexual. This doesn’t sound appealing at  _ all _ .”

“Once you find someone you truly love, you’ll see,” Finnegan assured her. “I knew that I liked women, but if ever I imagined kissing one, I just got grossed out. Never did I imagine kissing Fionn back when we first met. He was the one who first kissed me.”

“I missed,” Fionn admitted bashfully.

“Even so, I got all tingly even just thinking about it. You don’t expect a kiss to be as great as it is, especially if it’s with someone you truly love. If it’s  _ not _ someone you love, it can vary from tasteless emotions to all-out disgust. Since we’re friends, Aslaug, I can’t really say what it’ll be like for us. I mean, you’re great and all, but kissing you just feels unnatural.”

She nodded. “My thoughts exactly. You know what? How about we just go and get some drinks in us before we do anymore. Just talking about this had worn away my resolve.”

Aslaug didn’t have trouble convincing her peers that she was in some sort of relationship with Finnegan - even if it wasn’t truly romantic, all she had to do was imply it and others filled in the blanks. She heard the rumors about her, that she was simply falling for the first man she found, that some felt bad for Finnegan, and that others thought they were lying about it. Aslaug felt Fáfnir stir and suggest killing them, but Aslaug was enjoying his lack of influence too much.

Aslaug tied her hair into a braid, lacing flowers within. She felt it would be thematically appropriate for her wedding day to Finnegan. Despite it not being a real arrangement, she was happier than she could have been on a day like this. Their arrangement was mutually beneficial, and they had become good friends to boot. She had picked out the simplest dress she could. There was a whole ceremony to be done, but Aslaug had waited out something boring before.

Finnegan ended up making her laugh during the boring parts. They got the kiss over with and the rest of the day was spent with celebrations. Aslaug knew how to party. She grew up in a land full of Nords; of  _ course _ she knew how to party. Finnegan, on the other hand, was an introvert to the core. He and Fionn stayed at the corner of the room attempting to avoid detection, but being the main reason the celebration was occurring, many people went over to chat with him. Aslaug tried to remedy that by making a scene and getting the partygoers into a song while they were drunk as Nords could really get.

“Thanks!” Finnegan said.

“No problem!” Aslaug called over the crowd. Her voice would barely carry in the loud commotion. “I know it must be hard for you two today!”

He waved his hand. “Nah! We’ve all grown close enough to know it’s not weird! You sure seem to know how to do this!”

She laughed. “I’ve been to rowdier parties, for sure! This is how the nobles party! You should see the middle class and peasants!”

Aslaug ended up covering for Finnegan and Fionn as the two slipped to shelter under a table and talked together. She had a feeling they found it scandalously amusing to kiss at Finnegan’s wedding to another, but Aslaug didn’t mind. She stayed in her position to make sure no one got past her, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have her fun, chucking a few glasses at drunk partygoers’ heads and seeing if they passed out or managed to stay on their feet. She could roar louder than the whole crowd if she was so inclined, which allowed her to keep the party going for as long as she could.

“Aslaug, can we…?”

Aslaug saw Finnegan and Fionn looking slightly frazzled and nodded in agreement. “We can bow out at any time. It’s our celebration after all. They’ll probably be going for days.”

“Fey celebrations can hardly compare to the levels of…rowdy,” Fionn muttered - if you could call speaking at a regular volume muttering in the loud roar of the crowd.

Aslaug and Finnegan both laughed. They slipped out of the party hall and walked through the cold night to get home. Fionn huddled close to Finnegan as they walked, and Aslaug could tell Finnegan was unconsciously leaning into him for warmth. It must have been related to his lava-like hair when his glamour was down, but the fey radiated an aura of heat. Aslaug just had to take a few deep breaths and she could warm her body temperature to that of a fire. She breathed into her hands and flames came out, wrapping around her fingers before soaking through the skin.

They made it home and headed up to their room in Aslaug’s uncle’s family house. Aslaug quickly turned in, allowing the boys to sleep together in their bed with Aslaug in her own bed. She heard the vague sound of them speaking in low tones together and Finnegan’s breath becoming shorter. The next morning the pair were snuggled together tightly under the duvet. Aslaug saw hints of shoulders peeking out, but she could only shake her head and smile. The two looked peaceful wrapped together like that.

Aslaug woke them before any of the other servants came and checked on them, but she gave them all the time she could. It felt nice, helping someone she cared for. She’d never really helped anyone else before, no one who knew the truth about her anyway. She’d never had a family like this, a family so close to her. She liked it; she liked it a lot.


	3. Legacy

“So, I’ve been doing some research on your family history starting with this Fáfnir character you have in your head,” Finnegan said. “Going from Sigurd who killed the dragon and then the family both he and your mother married into-”

“Wait, what?”

Aslaug informed Finnegan of how far she’d gotten into the story of her father - how he had killed the dragon Fáfnir and killed the brother of Fáfnir who planned to kill Sigurd in order to take Fáfnir’s treasure.

“After your father slew Fáfnir, he wandered around and ended up finding a former Valkyrie woman within a ring of fire, cursed to sleep until someone worthy found her, passed the impassable flames, and woke her from the curse placed upon her.”

“How did she get cursed?”

“She was summoned to judge a competition and chose the man that Odin did not. The wisdom god hated being wrong, and it’s unclear whether she chose against Odin’s prediction on purpose or not. She ended up cursed to sleep within the armor of a man surrounded by a ring of fire. Your father was the only one capable of passing the flames and woke her, therefore gaining her respect for accomplishing such feats. They fell in love and agreed to be married. He proposed to her with the cursed Andvaranaut, dooming their love. I believe this is where they had you - he shared the remaining heart of Fáfnir with your mother before you were conceived.”

“Did you find what my mother’s name was?”

“Brynhildr.”

“Brynhildr. A former Valkyrie…”

“Your father left one day, the reason why is unclear, but he passed by the kingdom ruled by King Gjúki and his wife Grímhildr - a sorceress. They had three sons, Gunnar, Hǫgni, and Guthormr, and one daughter named Gudrun - also called Kriemhild. Grímhildr wanted the famous Sigurd for her daughter, so she erased his memories of Brynhildr, and he ended up marrying Gudrun. At the same time, Gunnar - one of Gudrun’s brothers and Grímhildr’s sons - had heard the legend of Brynhildr and wanted her hand in marriage.”

Aslaug snorted. “This family is shooting for the stars. Continue.”

“Since Gunnar couldn’t pass through Brynhildr’s ring of flame, he asked his brother Sigurd for help. They switched appearances and Sigurd convinced Brynhildr that he - Gunnar, that is - was worthy of her hand because he had passed through the flames. Since the real Sigurd had failed to return, Brynhildr was eventually swayed. In the end, because it was technically Sigurd who was talking to her, she fell for him even disguised. He laid his sword between them as they slept and promised he wouldn’t sleep with her until they were married. In reality, he was making sure he didn’t sleep with Gunnar’s wife. Brynhildr sent her daughter away so that she wouldn’t be executed for being Brynhildr’s daughter of another man. Perhaps it was out of care, perhaps it was out of hatred for the man who she thought had abandoned her. I…presume that was you.”

Aslaug frowned, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “So, my mom and dad both married into this family?”

Finnegan nodded. “But the curse of the Andvaranaut that Sigurd had taken from Fáfnir followed them. Gudrun and Gunnar lived separately with their spouses, so Brynhildr and Sigurd never truly interacted. Grímhildr might have also worked some magic, but either way, they _did_ learn the truth during a famous incident. Gudrun and Brynhildr were bathing together when they got into an argument about whose husband was superior. Brynhildr claimed Gunnar rode through the ring of flames protecting her, as only a worthy person could do, but Gudrun revealed the truth: that it was actually Sigurd who rode through those flames. Whether or not magic was used on Brynhildr, she then regained her memories of Sigurd and confronted him. He remembered the truth and begged her forgiveness, offering to marry her as he had once promised. But her rage drove her to madness, and she conscripted Gudrun’s brothers to kill Sigurd. There are varying tales of how it happened, but in the end they all agreed that Sigurd was stabbed in his sleep, but he managed to kill his assailant. Brynhildr laughed when she heard Gudrun’s screams and wails of despair. Gudrun and her brothers come into conflict because they agreed to kill Sigurd, and Brynhildr fell into a depression after what she’d done. Gunnar tried his best to keep her alive, but in the end, she stabbed herself and foretold the fall of Gunnar and Gudrun’s family. The tale ends there.”

“What did they do with the bodies?”

“They’re supposed to be burnt; I think Brynhildr requested she be burnt on the same pyre as Sigurd. Oh, here we go.”

Aslaug stared at the book. A drawn image of the funeral pyre depicted her mother and father, lying in the pyre with a sword between them. Aslaug felt herself unreasonably sad. She hardly knew these people, but at the same time, she felt an aching for a past she had lost before she’d ever known she’d lost it.

Fionn reached over and tore the page out of the volume - though it wasn’t exactly difficult with the simple string holding the crude paper. He waved his hand over the sheet and mouthed a few words as his voice whispered through the air with an enchanted tone. A shimmering aura appeared over the paper and then soaked into the material before disappearing. He handed the paper to Aslaug, and she realized that he had used magic to preserve the image for as long as it was fed a simple amount of energy that Aslaug could produce unconsciously with her own aura.

“Thank you.”

The fey nodded at her. Finnegan was confused, but as Fionn explained, Aslaug went back to the book and flipped through the remaining pages. There was very little that happened after that. Then again, this _did_ happen some twenty years ago. The next part of the saga was probably documented in another book somewhere.

“I want to go find this kingdom, find out what happened afterwards.”

Finnegan nodded. “We can look after things here while you’re gone. Most of the political stuff is over anyway.”

She nodded. “Thank you, Finnegan.”

He waved away the comment. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve already made my life a million times better. I have a stable life now, somewhat. I have Fionn, I have you who I can share my secrets with without fear of retribution, and you help me and Fionn stay hidden together. The least I can do is help you find out about your past after you’ve saved my entire life.”

“It was my pleasure, Finnegan.”

Aslaug announced her trip to her family the day before she left so that they’d have no opportunity to stop her. She left Finnegan in charge until she returned. He was going to occupy himself by searching for a new home for him and Aslaug. They were expected to eventually have a family, but all they really wanted was a home that they didn’t have risk of being caught with their secrets. Aslaug’s uncle didn’t mind. At the very least it looked on the outside as though Aslaug was conforming to her society. She didn’t like that notion, but for Finnegan and Fionn’s sake, she wanted to make sure that they kept things quiet as they could for the moment.

She traveled on foot to the kingdom of King Gjúki. He was apparently still in charge of the kingdom even twenty years later. Along the way, she felt Fáfnir’s presence returning, and she questioned him about the stories that she had read in case of any inaccuracies. Fáfnir may have been a bit of a jerk at times, but he was brutally honest. There was no point in lying since they shared the same head, after all.

‘ _Yup. I wasn’t_ always _a dragon. I was just large and fierce. My brother Otr was an otter-like fisherman though. Odin, Loki, and Hœnir went out fishing and killed Otr. King Hreidmar - our dad - demanded repayment, and Loki ended up using the ring of Andvari which gives any amount of riches at the cost of bringing misfortune and death. Even Loki himself was afraid of the ring’s curse - which was made specifically because he had pissed off Andvari who made the Andvaranaut ring_.’

“Let me guess. You took the ring because of your kleptomania, and bad things happened? My father murdered you.”

‘ _He took the Andvaranaut, but unfortunately for him, his relationship with your mother was crumbled thanks to the curse and both were killed._ ’

“Okay, so my mother was a former Valkyrie who Odin cast out because she judged a competition against Odin’s prediction and the wisdom guy couldn’t handle it. She got trapped in a ring of fire in an eternal sleep where her armor as a Valkyrie along with her status will be removed. My father comes along after defeating Fáfnir and is the only one worthy enough to pass through the flames and awaken her from her sleep, thinking she was a man. They fall in love, great, I’m born.”

‘ _After both of your parents ate my heart that your father salvaged after my death along with stealing all of my riches and drinking my collected blood from my death. The curse takes hold, of course, and makes sure their fates are met with a cruel journey towards their inevitable ends. Your father left the ring of fire temporarily and caught the eye of Grímhildr who wanted your father to marry his daughter, Gudrun._ ’

“Using some sorcery, she made my father forget all about my mother, leaving the two of us alone. My father married Gudrun and took brotherly vows to his new brothers in law. Following his honor code, he helped Gudrun’s brother Gunnar help win the hand of my mother - who was famous for being both a strong maiden and only worthy of the most fearless of men who can bypass the flames around her prison and win her heart. Only my father was able to pass through the ring of fire, not Gunnar, and so they switched appearances and my father convinced my mother to marry Gunnar because it looked as though Gunnar passed through the flames. My father even laid their sword between them and made sure that he didn’t sleep with her while disguised as another.”

‘ _Your mother agreed to the marriage, and because Gunnar and your father would live at separate estates, your mother and father would never meet once he had changed back. To make sure you weren’t killed, as the child of another man, your mother sent you off to be raised by a man she trusted - your uncle Heimr._ ’

“One day, Gudrun and my mother were bathing together and got into a fight over whose husband was superior. When my mother claimed Gunnar rode through the flames of her tower for her, Gudrun revealed the truth about my father - who he was and what he had done, switching places with Gunnar to win her hand in marriage. When my mother furiously confronted my father, he remembered her again, but she couldn’t be calmed with words and even refused a proposal by my father to win her heart back and marry her properly. She convinced one of Gudrun’s brothers to kill my father, and though my father managed to kill his assailant, he still died. My mother prophesied the remaining tragedies of Gudrun’s family before she killed herself.”

‘ _And that’s as far as I know the story goes. Most of this happened very recently, I hear. If you’re so eager to see your parents, go visit their kingdom. Perhaps we can take over thanks to your bloodline_.’

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “Anything to get richer with you.”

Aslaug asked around about the kingdom ruled by Gjúki. He was an old man and most of his children had perished in some way - though not before giving birth to grandchildren.

Gudrun apparently attempted to run away after Sigurd’s death, but her mother Grímhildr found her and forced her to marry King Atli against her will. She did so, but after some bad prophetic dreams, she sent word to her brothers to warn them that Atli was a madman. Her message was intercepted and changed so that it seemed as though she was inviting her brothers to come. Her remaining brothers were Hǫgni and Gunnar - meaning that Guthormr had been the one to die in attempting to kill Sigurd. Hǫgni’s wife realized that the message had been altered and had dreams about Atli’s treachery, but he didn’t believe her. Gunnar remarried and his new wife agreed with the horrific prophesized future. Gunnar gave up attempting to reinterpret her predictions and accepted he’d have a short life.

Both of the brothers went to Atli, but they killed the messenger that had attempted to alter the message. Atli said that he wanted Sigurd’s gold, claiming he was avenging Sigurd by killing his brothers-in-law, even though he had only been tempted by the greed of the treasure and the curse of the Andvaranaut continued. Even Gudrun took up arms against her husband after failing to stop the fighting. Though many of Atli’s champions were killed, Gunnar and Hǫgni were the only ones who survived on their side. Hǫgni’s heart was simply cut out and shown to Gunnar, while Gunnar was placed in a snake pit. Gudrun attempted to save him by bringing him a harp that he managed to play with his toes. All the snakes fell asleep except one, which bit his heart and killed him. Gudrun managed to get her revenge by killing Atli’s two sons and giving their blood and hearts to Atli to eat and drink. Meanwhile, Hǫgni’s son Niflung wanted to avenge his father and helped Gudrun kill Atli in his sleep and setting the hall on fire to kill all his retainers.

Aslaug documented all of this, using some magic to preserve and contain the journals of information she was transcribing.

The next part of the tale she managed to track down was about Gudrun. She and Sigurd apparently had a daughter named Svanhild. Every story and tale depicted her as radiantly beautiful, the most beautiful of all women, etc. Aslaug always had to roll her eyes. Aslaug herself didn’t care about her appearance, but she was always chastised for the fact that she wasn’t even trying to look beautiful. With men not a high priority, she didn’t care about attracting them. Finnegan was a lucky break, and he always told her that he didn’t really notice her appearance most of the time. She was just Aslaug. She didn’t need to be any prettier. When it came to Svanhild, Aslaug would believe it when she saw it.

Anyway, Gudrun went to the sea to drown herself out of the depression from losing her brothers and children to Atli’s madness, all because of her mother. Aslaug made a note to watch out for Grímhildr. There was no evidence that she had yet passed, so she was still in the kingdom of Gjúki ruling by his side. Gudrun got swept away to the court of King Jonakr, who rescued and married her. They had three subsequent children: Hamdir, Sörli, and Erp, and Svanhild was raised with them for the most part.

The Gjúkungar - the descendants of Gjúki - currently consisted of Svanhild and Hǫgni’s son Niflung (the one who helped Gudrun finally kill Atli in his sleep). Technically Hamdir, Sörli, and Erp all were descendants of the Jonakr line, Svanhild belonged more to Gjúki’s kingdom than Jonakr’s, and so she made frequent trips back to Gjúki’s kingdom. Perhaps Aslaug would get the chance to see her.

The kingdom of Gjúki was different than the land Aslaug had grown up in. For one, it was completely unfamiliar. No one knew of her reputation, meaning she had to be on guard to keep from getting pickpocketed, and she needed to balance making a reputation for herself and asserting her dominance over all the powerless peasants. She didn’t want to make too much notoriety for herself before she had the chance to investigate.

She headed to the palace. It was similar to her mansion, only far more expansive. Hopping the stone wall surrounding the wall was easy, and avoiding the guards was child’s play. The guards back home always followed strict paths, they got bored and inattentive. Aslaug had played many pranks on them and made sure to keep them on their toes. It gave her some fun and was a nice way of telling them to get their act together without getting them fired. Despite her rash attitude, she did care about people, and she’d rather get the guards to do their job better than rat them out for something they really couldn’t help. Everyone faced boredom, even Aslaug. There was sometimes nothing to be done but use a little fear.

Aslaug could jump the wall in a single leap, summoning a small gust of wind to keep her landing soft and silent. She had been developing the full extent of her powers, especially on her trip. Fáfnir was happy to have the chance to let loose, but Aslaug still restrained him. It made the dragon prissy as ever, and every time she used his power in the slightest, she got a lecture on how he deserved some thanks for giving her his gifts.

‘ **_I’m not going over this now, Fáfnir,_ ** ’ Aslaug thought to him. ‘ **_We’re in the middle of an infiltration mission._ **’

She’d also been learning to take control of their mind and was able to speak freely with Fáfnir mentally, though she did still feel his consciousness pushing against hers forcefully at times.

‘ _Infiltrating the enemy. Meaning we should be able to let loose. They’re strangers, they ruined your parents’ lives. What’s the matter?_ ’

‘ **_The matter is that I still want to assess every aspect of the situation before we go wild. The more knowledge we have about Grímhildr the better. I don’t want her pulling some strategic stunt against you and your brash nature._ **’

She walked through the outer gardens. The plants there were so much more expansive, and flourishing compared to the mansion back home. Aslaug could feel enchantment in the roots of this place. It was mesmerizing and terrifying. Even Fáfnir couldn’t seem to tell if he felt at home here or if he felt unnerved.

“Garden of a sorceress, no doubt,” Aslaug muttered.

Aslaug recognized some herbs used for magic. She’d done her studies when it came to both science and magic. Science admittedly wasn’t very advanced at the time and was even less logical than magical explanations, but Greeks had shared _some_ wisdom with the world. Aslaug found physics and mathematics fascinating, because most of the world worked by its logic, and the rest of the magical world went by a separate logic, but a logic, nonetheless. Aslaug was determined to learn more about everything, develop both her mind and body. She had a goal to go to Athens one day. Or Sparta too, maybe learn some hardcore fighting skills. Knowing most of the herbs growing here, she learned both that there were things she knew and didn’t know.

‘ _There’s something here,_ ’ Fáfnir muttered.

‘ **_What?_ **’

‘ _Something you must find with great haste._ ’

‘ **_Why? Fáfnir, stop being so cryptic. You want me to do something, just tell me what and why._ **’

‘ _Your parents’ legacy still remains here to this day. Find them._ ’

‘ **_Their legacies? What does that mean, Fáfnir?_ **’

‘ _Their weapons, their treasure, their power, Aslaug. Do you not understand the true magnitude of what I’m saying?_ ’

‘ **_Your kleptomania is showing?_ **’

‘ _Perhaps, but that’s not the point! The potential of your parents has been passed down to you, Aslaug. Their curse destroyed them before they could understand the true extent of their power. They settled down and married, but they never utilized their power._ ’

‘ **_And you want_ ** **me** **_to do it instead._ ** ’ Aslaug sighed and shook her head. ‘ **_You and your obsession with treasure and power is going to get us killed one day. I don’t fancy babysitting your dumb urges all the time._ **’

Aslaug knelt by one of the unfamiliar plants. It looked similar to thimbleberry, but the hue was all wrong. The leaf was just slightly too pale, the berries were a shade too purple to be the regular red.

‘ _Come on, Aslaug, please! I know it’s close! You’ll never forgive yourself if you pass up an opportunity like this!_ ’

‘ **_I’m not indulging your foolish delusions of grandeur, Fáfnir._ **’

‘ _What if I told you that if you don’t find these artifacts and they get in the hands of the wrong person, you’re endangering your little husband’s precious lover?_ ’

Aslaug would’ve glared at the dragon if he had a physical form. ‘ **_What do you mean?_ **’

‘ _His father’s a dangerous man, searching for the most powerful of objects to control not only the fey realm but the rest of the supernatural realm as well. Uniting the entire inhumane world will create a devastating army if they somehow manage to work together. Rounding up even the fiercest of creatures requires a great fear-factor, there is no other way around it. Power like that of Sigurd and Brynhildr’s power combined will be near-unstoppable if they’re used correctly. Once the fey court have that under their control, the human world will be easy pickings._ ’

‘ **_The main reason humanity survives such a chance is because they have great warriors and disorganized monster populations,_ **’ Aslaug admitted.

‘ _And if the king of a fey kingdom gains the power to control the entire supernatural world through fear, there will be little that can stop him. Ask your little fey boy if you ever want to. His father is not to be taken lightly._ ’

‘ **_So, taking the power for myself is the better option._ **’

‘ _Obviously._ ’

‘ **_You’re such a prick._ **’

“Tingleberry.”

Aslaug turned at the sudden voice, standing to her feet at a gentle pace to show she wasn’t startled but to show she _was_ defensive. The first thing she noticed was strawberry-blonde hair. Aslaug always hated blond-haired people. Her uncle’s family was born with blonde hair; no matter how dark and dirty blonde it was, it was still blond. Aslaug’s hair was born an orange-ish-red. Not lava red like Fionn’s but closer to Finnegan’s natural orange hair rather than the inhuman fey stuff. The rest she noticed was the smooth pale skin and dark green traveling cloak. It was a woman, but she was taller even than Aslaug. Her beauty was…okay, Aslaug supposed. She was at least better than the regular woman dolled up and dainty. She looked ready for a combat trip, or at the very least she looked ready to fake it.

“That’s tingleberry you’ve got there. Named for its numbing tingle effect, like you just sat on your leg and the tingle is so painful it hurts. The tingleberry can mimic such an effect by depriving oxygen to your body. Can be applied in a paste form or simply eaten for a fatal effect. About ten berries is enough to numb one’s entire body when applied in the right place. Twenty berries can cause a shutdown of the area applied and result in near death if not treated properly. Thirty is fatal without hope of salvation.”

“You know your stuff,” Aslaug said.

Panicking wasn’t something Aslaug had ever learned how to do. She wasn’t worried about being caught, not really. But she did feel something from this woman. Was it familiar?

The blonde shrugged. “I’m a botanist. It means I study plants.”

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “I _know_ what a botanist is.”

“Some people don’t.” The woman walked around Aslaug and kneeled at the bushes, harvesting the tingleberry. “Tingleberry plants require constant harvesting or the crops will grow too wild. They’ll suck the life out of everything that lives around it, produce too much of the berry, and then end up poisoning itself. They’re worse than any weed, but valuable if you use them for the right purposes.”

“Or the wrong ones.”

The woman smiled. “Depends on your point of view.”

“In what way?”

She moved around the rest of the garden, tending to the plants with quick examinations or harvesting some of the plants and berries. “If, per se, there was a man hated so much by his brethren that he deserved to know pain. Or a woman who only ruined the lives of even her own family for no reason at all beyond her own selfish madness. People who do nothing good for this world. Adversely, they can be used for torture and interrogation. At the right levels, they can cause great pain in a way that cuts and bruises never could. There is no numbing to a tingleberry’s pain, there’s no adjusting to the agony. The muscles begin to seize, the body contorts and hopes to find any way to lessen the pain even a fraction. It’s a beautiful process to watch - and a painful one. Just watching a victim gives you phantom pains.”

“Why would you be growing those here?” Aslaug asked innocently.

“My family has its interests,” she shrugged. “Anyway, I should be asking the questions. Do you have an appointment with the king? I’d be happy to escort you if so.”

“Yes, that’d be ideal.”

Aslaug really didn’t see a reason why not. The only one she was worried about was Grímhildr. All she came here for was answers about her parents. She knew they had died, but what happened to their remains? Perhaps Fáfnir had been influencing her for a while longer than she’d anticipated. Maybe she _did_ come here to search for the remaining legacy of her parents. It belonged to her, after all, and she wanted whatever she could get from her parents that she never knew and never would. Or maybe that was just Fáfnir. That should be the mantra of her life - ‘ _Or maybe that’s just Fáfnir._ ’

“He’s busy right now,” the woman said. “Until he’s open, you can hang out with me in the gardens. We so rarely get visitors.” She continued around the garden, organizing her collection in a basket. “If you want to make yourself useful, go over to that red plant and harvest some of the red fruit.”

Aslaug went in the direction she was instructed. “Flandragora fruit?”

The woman chuckled. Her voice was smooth as a river. But rivers were merciless, carving out the earth itself and eroding the land with efficiency and persistence over decades, centuries, millennia.

“You’re well-informed yourself, stranger. Do you know what the Flandragora fruit is known for?”

“Flandragora are enchanted fey monsters. They breed in heavily humid and expansive forests to protect the wildlife population. They’re fully sentient and can merge together with others of their kind to grow into monstrous proportions. To have regular fruit to harvest…that requires heavy magic warding to prevent them from fully developing into Flan monsters. The red stuff is Flandragora specifically, meant to mimic tomatoes. There are many other versions of Flan that adapt to their environment. Among other things, they’re masters at camouflage. The paste that comes from harvested Flandragora fruit has the potential to mimic any other organic or inorganic material so long as there’s a…seed, so to speak. Something to mimic and a catalyst to begin the transformation. Handy for when you’re short on material.”

The woman smiled. “Very good. You’ve done your research. You a botanist?”

“Just well-studied.”

“What’s a woman like you doing here in our kingdom? If you’re looking to marry Niflung, I should warn you that there’s a long line.”

Aslaug shook her head and waved a passive hand. “No, no. I’m married to a man I care for deeply. I was lucky enough to find him alone. I don’t think I could tolerate a royal family name on my shoulders.”

The woman ran her eyes up and down Aslaug’s body. Aslaug wondered why she felt self-conscious under one of countless scrutinizing gazes she’d been under all her life. “No, you don’t look like something who’d be tied down.”

“Neither do you. I can sense the free spirit in you. But you look tied down despite that.”

She walked across the garden in a trance, looking around at the plants that Aslaug presumed she knew like the back of her hand, by heart. She’d probably been born and raised in this garden. Aslaug felt like an intruder on another’s territory. Aslaug was being truthful, however. She saw this deep sadness and regret in the other woman’s heart. Aslaug had once looked trapped like that when she was little, a girl in a world that didn’t fit her, wandering down the path that everyone else told her to wander because she didn’t have any other idea what to do.

“I’ve had a pretty rough life,” the woman admitted. “I’m sure you’ve heard of the incidents surrounding my family’s curse?”

“I’ve heard the rumors.”

“One way or another, my family has been cursed. My mother’s been through a lot and all I want for her is to have a peaceful life.”

“I’ve heard about Atli and what he did to ruin your family.”

She sighed. “It started with Sigurd and Brynhildr joining the family. They brought with them the curse of the Andvaranaut. Brynhildr went mad with grief after she learned that Sigurd had left her. In reality, his memories had been wiped and he had been used in a plot to get Brynhildr to marry into the family as well. It’s truly a tragedy that never should’ve happened. Then, Atli came in a ruined everything. The remains of this family were brought to the brink.”

Aslaug nodded. “Now there’s only Niflung and…you.”

“Svanhild,” she introduced. “Of course, there’s also my grandfather, but I fear he is not long for this world. I am the daughter of Gudrun and Sigurd, and as I am older than Niflung, there is furious debate as to who should take the throne. I wish for Niflung to rule, he is far more capable, but there are many still vying for my crown.”

Aslaug nodded; she was listening, but she was mostly lost in her thoughts. As she had suspected. She was either Svanhild or Grímhildr in disguise.

“You…look as beautiful as they say,” Aslaug said.

Svanhild smiled. “Yes, well most people say that. But not quite so…uncertainly.”

Aslaug shrugged. “I’m not sure what I expected. Not sure I expected anything. I mean, I knew there was a chance I’d meet you, but I didn’t plan for it.”

Svan smiled lightly. “A lot of people, men and women alike, come to this place for me. I believe beauty may be a contributing factor.”

Aslaug couldn’t tell if she was serious or not. “People seem to care for women only for their appearance these days. Women are supposed to be valued for their wisdom and fierceness. A strong man is nothing compared to a strong woman. Sure, we don’t always have physical strength, but our intellectual prowess as well as our unpredictable natures and acting skills end up creating deadly combinations.”

Svanhild smiled. “Call me Vaan, stranger. So, do you have a name I can call you?”

“Aslaug.”

Aslaug wondered if Vaan would recognize her name. She was mentioned as the daughter of Brynhildr and Sigurd only once in the book that Aslaug had read, and it had been twenty some years since anyone who could’ve ever known about her existed. Her uncle Heimr had gone to great lengths to hide her origins from her for as long as possible, and Aslaug had a feeling that he had also gone to great lengths to hide her existence from everyone else. As far as anyone else knew, Aslaug was a relative of Heimr, but not his direct descendant. Her odd growth and powers weren’t easy to hide, but because she had been born blessed or cursed, no more no less. There was nothing to indicate her powers came from Fáfnir, and even after her investigation, there wasn’t anything that could incriminate her as Fáfnir’s chosen or whatever.

“Aslaug. What a nice name.”

“Or Kráka,” Aslaug admitted before she could stop herself.

Kráka was the name that Aslaug had been given in order to hide her identity.

Aslaug wasn’t sure how Heimr and her mother met, but it was somewhere when she was a Valkyrie. Heimr was someone her mother trusted enough to send Aslaug to in order for her to be raised by him - family, one might say, which is why Aslaug simply called him ‘Uncle’ even though that wasn’t how their relationship truly was. When word spread of her parent’s demise (which Aslaug now knew was famous enough to be spread across the lands), Heimr had to transport Aslaug in secret to his estate, making sure that her existence was either completely denied as fact or that she had died as an infant. He made a large harp big enough for her small frame to fit within and traveled as a poor harp-player with Aslaug inside the harp he lugged around.

During the trip, they stopped and stayed in the house of the peasants Áke and Grima. Áke thought the harp contained valuable items and told his wife Grima, who then convinced him to murder Heimr in his sleep. Aslaug overheard the plot in her hiding place and summoned her powers to protect Heimr at the last second, effectively faking his death. Áke and Grima broke open the harp and found Aslaug, passed out from her act of sorcery. By the time Aslaug woke the next morning, Heimr had properly reprimanded them for their actions. Áke and Grima turned out to be very good people, and Heimr had eventually been convinced to bring them back to work for his estate. Áke and Grima were Aslaug’s good friends and then eventually tutors. Being from a poor upbringing, they knew how to handle tough situations, and Aslaug was nothing if not a tough situation. Aslaug might even call them her parents.

When some men had come and investigated the town that Heimr was known to live in, looking for Aslaug, Aslaug had gone with Áke and Grima to be raised temporarily under the name Kráka. Áke and Grima still called Aslaug Kráka to this day; it was somewhat of an inside joke between them, and Aslaug enjoyed being called Kráka. It was a memory from a time when she was not a noble, when she wasn’t forced to hide away within the large, gloomy halls of her home, and instead lived in a quaint inn, working with Áke and Grima as the cute little child helping out at her parents’ job. Often, she still switched between Aslaug and Kráka when she went on her adventures to the slums of her town.

“That’s quite a different name,” Vaan noted. “Aslaug basically means ‘female god’ or ‘married female god,’ while Kráka simply means ‘Crow.’”

Aslaug nodded. “I like crows. I was born Aslaug, but sometimes I don’t want to be Aslaug. I just want to be nothing but a crow. A black harbinger of death who can fly away at any time, watch humanity’s misadventures from my little perch.”

Vaan shrugged. “You look more like a dragon to me.”

Aslaug felt Fáfnir stirring within her. Perhaps it was interest, maybe some caution in there too. While Aslaug dismissed the idea, Fáfnir brought up the inevitable concern: what if she knew? Svanhild was technically a child of Sigurd as well, and while her mother was not Brynhildr, the stories say that Sigurd shared some of the heart of Fáfnir with Gudrun - Vaan’s mother - as well, upon their marriage. Would Fáfnir’s consciousness be shared between the two sisters? Or was Aslaug being born first mean Fáfnir was exclusively hers?

Aslaug felt an odd protectiveness over Fáfnir. Sure, the dragon was rude and prissy and annoyed her to no end and took advantage of every opportunity to embarrass her or take control of her body during moments of weakness, but Fáfnir was hers. Fáfnir’s power, attitude and all, belonged to Aslaug, and they had all her life. She couldn’t imagine her life without Fáfnir’s constant nagging keeping her on her toes as well as the perks of learning to control his power.

“You don’t seem like one to just sit by and observe,” Vaan continued. “You hold what you love dear to you and snap at anything that threatens the sanctity of your world.”

“You’re…philosophical.”

She shrugged. “I have a lot of time to look at these kinds of things. And I’ve never been wrong before, sadly. I knew Atli was a bad man from the moment I met him, but…I thought I was just being paranoid. It’s common for children to deny new parents when their widowed parent remarries. I didn’t want to complain and be a further burden to my mother who had already lost my father. In the end, I’m not sure my opinion would’ve made any difference. My mother already had premonitions about Atli, a lot of people did. But the damage was still done.”

“You lost your uncles.”

She nodded. “There was a great deal of bloodshed. My mother attempted to stop the fighting, but in the end, she took up arms and fought with her brothers. Their army fell to Atli’s, and both were slain despite my mother’s efforts to rescue them. She killed my half-brothers and fed their blood and hearts to Atli to eat and drink. Niflung and my mother worked together to finally kill that man. Another reason why Niflung deserves the throne more than me. All I could do was watch. Women are, by no means, expected to be complacent. My mother fought Atli with her brothers, she killed the children who shared Atli’s blood, and though she could not manage the deed on her own, she still worked with Niflung to slay Atli. Meanwhile, I didn’t do anything. I hid. My mother feared Atli would kill me simply on the principle that I was the daughter of another man.”

“My mother feared the same thing.”

Vaan’s gaze rose to meet Aslaug’s. Her eyes had an unnervingly alluring effect. Worst part was probably the innocence - she hardly realized the effect of her appearance to its full extent.

“My mother fell in love with a wonderful man. But he left one day and never came back. Turns out, he had been taken by a sorceress. She met another who found interest in her, and she accepted his marriage proposal, leaving me behind in the process because she feared what might happen. I hardly knew my father, but I’ve heard many tales. He was a great man, though I suppose I’m slightly biased.”

Vaan smiled. “Nothing wrong with valuing your family ties. Unless, of course, your family ties are…less than ideal.”

“You’re the daughter of Sigurd, no?”

She sighed. Her shoulders shrugged as though she was wincing from the statement. “Yes. Some expect me to be a warrior because of my father’s genes. But I was still a child when he died. I remember him just a little, but already his face, his voice…it’s all disappearing.”

Aslaug felt a flare of jealousy as she realized Vaan, at one point, knew what Sigurd’s face looked like. The best that Aslaug had were the sketches made in the legends surrounding Sigurd’s accomplishments. Vaan may have been a child when Sigurd died, but Aslaug had been an infant when her father had left her - barely learning to walk, her uncle guessed.

“You don’t need to be a fighter,” Aslaug admitted. “I don’t see why you can’t be whoever you _want_ to be. Niflung can bear the weight of the kingdom and crown, and you can do whatever you please. The possibilities for a woman are infinite in this life, and if ever you wanted to take up the warrior lifestyle, your origins might serve you if ever you want to call on them - for credibility or even power. But blood doesn’t make you who you are.”

Vaan sighed. “I know. I’ve told myself that, others have told me that, and yet…I guess I still feel constrained.”

“In what way?”

Vaan moved to a granite bench, sweeping her traveling cloak behind her. “My grandmother’s a sorceress. She’s been teaching me everything she knows. My mother and her brothers never had any interest in the skills she was willing teach, and so my grandmother was ecstatic to have someone to pass her wisdom onto.”

Aslaug cautiously sat on the other end of the marble bench, hoping she wasn’t being too presumptuous. “Grímhildr was the one who caused all those issues with Brynhildr, right?”

Vaan chuckled. “My grandmother is not a good woman, no. I grew up hating Brynhildr. My mother always told me to stay away from her, though I never knew why. She was my aunt. I thought it was maybe because my mom didn’t want me to become a warrior like her, though I argued that my father was one too. She never explained, she just forbade me from ever speaking to her. Now I know it was to hide the fact that I was Sigurd’s daughter - the daughter of her former love who had been taken away by unethical means. But to my child mind, all I saw was that Brynhildr made my father abandon my mother when he proposed to her. I didn’t understand Brynhildr’s rage when she learned Sigurd had abandoned her; all I saw was that she killed him, laughed when my mother woke in a pool of her husband’s blood.”

“I’m sorry. That must have been traumatic for you.”

She nodded. “Then Brynhildr killed herself, eliminating any chance of me growing up to get revenge or anything. It gave me even more reason to hate her. But now that I’m a little older and maybe wiser, I guess I just can’t stay mad at a woman who had so much taken from her. My own mother went through so much, and right now, I just want her to be happy. She’s married to a king now who loves her, I’ve got three brothers who would defend me to the death even though I’m not fully their sister. Hamdir and Sörli are a bit rough around the edges, but they’re good people underneath it all. And Erp is a total nerd, adorable, really, but he can handle himself just fine in a fight, and his intelligence is second to none. It’s kinda sad that my little brothers have to protect me - though Erp is technically older but he’s more brains than brawn. Erp is King Jonakr’s son from another marriage, but he treats me as a sister all the same.”

“I’d think I’d like them. But they surely don’t _need_ to protect you. You’re fully capable on your own. I don’t need to be some sorceress to see that.”

She sighed. “I know that I can fight. There’s some built-in power in my genes that comes out whenever I’m in need. But what I really want to be is a physician. I want to use my grandma’s skills not for my own personal needs but to help others. Unfortunately, I’m not sure how well my grandmother would take such things. She’s raised me to be…not the nicest, really. Does it make me a bad person to hope for her death so that I can stop worrying about such things?”

“You can be whatever you _want_ , Vaan. In this day and age, killing off annoying family members or complete strangers seems to be commonplace.”

“Not when you’ve been raised in a secluded and royal family like mine.”

“Oh, _especially_ in royal families. Money, wealth, power - or lack thereof - causes all _kinds_ of issues. Don’t be afraid to take charge of your destiny, girl. Besides, Grímhildr’s done some terrible things to your family. Wasn’t your mother’s marriage to Atli arranged and forced upon your mother by Grímhildr?”

Vaan nodded grimly. “Yes…I suppose that’s true.”

“My lady!” a voice called.

Vaan’s head shot up and she stood. “That’s my cue to bow out, unfortunately. I hope to see you again, Aslaug.”

Aslaug nodded. “Does anyone come to this garden?”

“Just me, and maybe a servant following me. My grandmother’s too ancient to do yardwork nowadays, and ever since I began studying under her, I began to take up obligations like the garden. Everyone here knows that I come here for solitude, so I can make sure no one comes here.”

“I’ll be here when I can, if you ever need a talk. And maybe if I need one too.”

“My lady!” the voice repeated more urgently.

“You will be staying in the kingdom?”

“For some time. I enjoy speaking with you. Am I too pompous to assume you return the sentiment?”

She nodded. “Yes. For a strange reason…yes. Come visit the gardens whenever you can. I wouldn’t allow such things in normal circumstances, but…I’d like to hear your tale, Aslaug. And I believe you are a good person.”

She smiled. “That’s high praise, coming from a princess like you.”

Vaan chuckled. “I suppose so, though I don’t feel much like a princess when I’m talking with you, Aslaug. I’ve never met such an…eccentric character.”

“In a good way, I hope.”

“In the best way.”

Vaan hurried off, calling out to her servants to assure them she was simply delayed in the garden. Aslaug found herself smiling even when Vaan was long out of sight. Aslaug had never met someone like Vaan despite her growing up in the world of nobility. Hell, Aslaug had met royalty before. Then again, she _was_ a bit of a hermit when it came to interacting with people. She’d never really gotten to know someone like Vaan before.


	4. Tomb Raider...Or Not

‘ _Now that that’s over, on to your parents’ heirlooms._ ’

Aslaug sighed. ‘ **_I’m only doing this for Finnegan and Fionn’s sake to keep the power from the fey kingdom and endangering the whole of human society. I’m not always a fan of humanity, but that doesn’t mean I want them wiped out._ **’

‘ _Whatever you say, Aslaug._ ’

‘ **_If you’re lying to me, Fáfnir, I’m going to make us watch that stupid play in the theater back home a hundred times for every trinket we recover just because of your kleptomaniac tendencies._ **’

‘ _You’d torture both of us so? Oh, how cruel you are, Aslaug. I’ll make you a monster yet._ ’

Aslaug simply grumbled. Fáfnir was constantly trying to make Aslaug lose her cool and her compassion, and Aslaug made her own personal goal to spite Fáfnir and resist. Most of Aslaug’s aggressive outbursts were Fáfnir’s fault, though most of the time her peers blamed them on her time of the month since sometimes she was calm and collected and sometimes she had a short fuse. Honestly, Aslaug didn’t understand what a ‘time of the month’ meant until she was around 15 and one of her younger friends started bleeding and Fáfnir’s nose couldn’t handle it, so he demanded Aslaug help the girl or he’d never shut up. Apparently normal girls bled once a month to represent the fact that she hadn’t had sex with a man and hadn’t started making a kid. Then Aslaug had to have a complicated talk with her tutor which bored her to death since Fáfnir had already long since explained this stuff. With a dragon inside her, Aslaug had this thing about her sex drive in the sense that it didn’t exist. Like, at all. Or at the very least, it didn’t exist like it was supposed to. The thought of sex with a man made her want to punch someone. The thought of pregnancy was horrifying for both her and Fáfnir alike. Fáfnir _was_ male, after all.

Aslaug beat up a lot of humans, monsters, boys and girls, adults and children, but she wasn’t evil. She targeted those who had done bad things or rude things, but when she allowed Fáfnir to let loose, there was always going to be a gruesome slaughter, no exceptions, and more often than not Aslaug was convinced to join in the action because someone had probably pissed her off enough to want some sweet revenge. A lot of the time, Fáfnir attempted to keep her in that rage-induced form where the two of them worked together for the sake of terrifyingly efficient, indiscriminate murder, but Aslaug always managed to pull herself back.

Fáfnir and Aslaug had a constant conflict that both knew would not be over quickly, and they both found amusement and annoyance in their interactions to the point that it had become a running dangerous joke between them.

Aslaug allowed Fáfnir to work with her as they searched the gardens for traces of the powerful artifacts that Fáfnir was sensing. They hid themselves from any servants milling about, but found that the palace was a lot bigger than the mansion grounds that Aslaug had grown up on.

‘ _Beneath us,_ ’ Fáfnir concluded.

‘ **_How are we supposed to get to them if they’re under the earth?_ ** ’ Aslaug asked. ‘ **_And no, we’re_ ** **not** **_just busting a hole down there._ **’

Fáfnir let out a heavy mental sigh of annoyance. ‘ _Fine. There must be an entrance beneath the palace, some kind of tomb where the relics of your parents remain._ ’

Aslaug opened her senses and pushed their power radius as far as she could into the palace. Aslaug’s radius was at about 15 meters at that point - around 50 feet. She still had a lot of ground to cover despite how wide her radius was.

‘ _We should call it a PR._ ’

‘ **_A public relation?_ **’

‘ _No, a_ power radius _._ ’

‘ **_I don’t know. A PR sounds really stupid. Shouldn’t there be some fancy name for it already?_ **’

‘ _I never felt a need to name it, but now that I’ve got you in my head, now we need a name for it._ ’

‘ **_Hey, you’re in_ ** **my** **_head, mister._ **’

‘ _There it is! The PR has sensed it!_ ’

‘ **_No. It’s a Radar. Dragon Radar. Let’s go with that._ **’

‘ _Fine then! The DR has sensed it!_ ’

‘ **_Ugh, I still don’t like it. We’ll work on it._ **’

Aslaug wasn’t very surprised that Fáfnir was so happy. She made her way into an alcove with ceremonial engravings and decorations which was no doubt made in honor of Sigurd and by extension Brynhildr. No matter how mad she went, Brynhildr was still married to that Gunnar guy who was the son of King Gjúki. She was royalty same as Sigurd, she was a former Valkyrie and Shieldmaiden and she could still kick ass no matter if Odin had stripped her of her status. There were those that both revered and reviled her, and she was wronged just as Sigurd was. Their story is controversially a tragedy, but apparently enough people cared to make their tomb fancy.

Aslaug put her hand on the door and shoved, breaking the seal easily. There were some magical wards put up, but Aslaug had little trouble pushing her power radius (oh gods, it _was_ a power radius, wasn’t it? No! She would come up with a fancy name. Maybe she’d start looking for new languages for translations) through them. Her and Fáfnir’s power was dense, trained, and focused, and Aslaug had never really had a comparison beyond her own village-town, she was surprised to find wards on a royal tomb so weak. These were dangerously powerful artifacts, if Fáfnir was to be believed, and anyone would want to get their hands on the treasures of the great Sigurd and the great Brynhildr. Greed was everywhere in this lifetime, and her parents’ treasures were prime targets. If Fáfnir said they were still down there, she’d take his word for it, but if there was some kind of caveat or trap, she was going to mentally stab the dragon for making her come all this way for the sake of his own greed.

Aslaug descended down stone steps lighting torches along the hall with her power once the light from the door got too far away.

“How far down does this go?” Aslaug wondered aloud.

She always liked to speak aloud whenever possible - which wasn’t often - in order to balance herself out with Fáfnir. Whenever she was exhausted and couldn’t keep up with him mentally, she’d need to speak aloud as well.

‘ _They went to great lengths to make sure that this tomb and the treasures within were hidden from detection. There are heavy wards on this area and keeping the treasures underground makes it so that the magical traces are buried deep enough to be hidden even from someone standing right above it._ ’

“And you’re just _so_ magical for being able to sense past them.”

‘ _Oh, I’m flattered, Aslaug. You’re warming up to me yet._ ’

“Whatever, Fáfnir.”

She headed deeper down the steps, taking a couple turns and entering large caverns that appeared to be testing grounds, but they were empty of any guardian monsters or traps. Aslaug wasn’t sure if that was deliberate or not.

Aslaug finally made it to a fancy ceremonial door that looked far more complex than the other doors. It was made of large heavy gears that would open the heavy stone panels, with a keyhole that clearly acted as the opening mechanism. She put her hand on the door and sensed the heavy magical warding as well. There were all kinds of magics in place, actually. Aslaug put both her hands on the door and pushed her powers through her palms to try and burn away the warding.

‘ _Push harder girl!_ ’

“Stop…shouting!” Aslaug grunted.

She focused her and Fáfnir’s energy together, and even the dragon was trying his hardest, but the warding ended up reflecting their power and shoving them both back harshly enough to send Aslaug flying back. She grunted as she hit the rocky floor and slid a few feet before coming to a stop.

‘ _Dammit!_ ’

“Even your power couldn’t break through?” Aslaug asked.

‘ _We’re not strong enough for this? Something so trivial and base as this stupid door!_ ’ Fáfnir raised Aslaug’s fist and smashed it against the rocky wall behind her, cracking it with ease. ‘ _We are getting through this damned door, Aslaug! Get the fuck up and try again! I’ll pour more power through your body, if you think you can handle it that is._ ’

“All right, all right, yeesh.”

Aslaug stood, noticing that her skin was hardening to dragon scales. She knew if she didn’t placate the dragon soon, she’d risk losing control. Taking down the entire palace was _one_ way of getting in there, but there was no guarantee that the room wasn’t sealed from all sides rather than just a door embedded into the wall.

The two of them ended up trying a dozen more times before even Fáfnir was wiped out and Aslaug had to rest. By the time she woke up and headed back up, the sun had fallen and the moon lit the gardens of the palace. She closed the doors of the tomb manually to cover her tracks (if she hadn’t already been found out) and found a hidden corner where she collapsed within the foliage.

“Well _that_ went well,” Aslaug muttered, her voice hidden under the noises of the bugs amongst the garden.

‘ _We must find a way in, Aslaug. There must be someone in the palace with a key._ ’

“I can’t believe we were beaten by a stupid door.”

‘ _The power of your parents is being funneled into powering that door. The artifacts themselves are stopping us from retrieving them. The only energies that could possibly overpower you and I combined are that of your parents combined outside a human vessel._ ’

“Raw artifacts versus a human that must learn and develop at my own risk and with my own limits,” Aslaug summarized.

‘ _Now you see that if we get control of these artifacts, nothing will be able to stop us._ ’

“There are higher powers than my parents, Fáfnir. Far higher.”

‘ _And we shall grow stronger than that which stands to threaten us. You are human, Aslaug, and whether I like it or not, you have the power to grow stronger than I am. Humans are diverse creatures. They can grow and push their limits; you have the will power to_ want _to surpass your limits and so you can. Though there is a challenge, you still have the luxury of the choice to pursue your goals._ ’

“Wow, Fáfnir…I didn’t expect that of you.”

‘ _With your body and my power combined, we can be the ultimate source of destruction! No power can stand in our way! All we have to do is get your weak-ass body trained up._ ’

“Aaaaand there it is,” Aslaug sighed. “We can investigate the palace tomorrow when we have the power to sneak around. For now, we need rest.”

Fáfnir snorted, but for once he didn’t argue and Aslaug could feel him snuggling up for rest. Mentally of course. Aslaug liked to sleep in the wilderness since it never really bothered her before, but tonight Fáfnir was weakened and therefore his protection was also weakened. All she had was her travelling cloak, but that was more than enough to keep her warm, and as she relaxed, she was able to summon some of Fáfnir’s dragon scales and her own internal heating to make herself a bit more comfortable. By the time she had passed out, she had a dreamless sleep, no Fáfnir to bother her that night.

When Aslaug woke up, it was to a mental poking over her arm.

‘ _Wake up girl! Wake UP!_ ’

“Fáfnir?”

‘ _Get UP Aslaug!_ ’

She grumbled, feeling a sharp pain of annoyance in her heart, but without a Fáfnir to actually swat at, he wouldn’t stop poking and prodding her to wake up. She forced her eyes open and activated her senses. The moment she did, her eyes snapped wide.

“Where are we?”

Fáfnir sighed. ‘ _That’s what I’ve been trying to wake you for! Someone moved us last night!_ ’

Aslaug huffed. “Just remember, this is all _your_ fault.”

Aslaug was in a bed. It was definitely in the palace, since the mattress was soft and the sheets were delicate. Only royalty could possibly afford such a luxurious sleeping mat. Aslaug would know, having grown up in a noble family. But this was beyond even her uncle’s mansion - seeing as this was a royal palace versus her noble family house. This room was _far_ too big and luxurious to be a guest room. It was decorated with jewels and silks, gold, china, and porcelain. There were cabinets filled with bottles of liquids and physical items alike, many herbs included.

Aslaug got to her feet, feeling wobbly as she took deep breaths. Bad idea to have used so much energy the night before, but Fáfnir’s stubbornness bled into Aslaug as their frustration had grown. Aslaug headed over to the window balcony, pushing past silky curtains and glass doors. She was a couple stories up. Down below, she could see the garden. The fresh air cooled Aslaug’s sleepy state and helped her wake up and regain her composure.

“We’re right above the tomb,” Aslaug muttered. She could see the foliage where she’d been sleeping last night from the balcony. “Who brought us up here? When?”

She whistled, letting a little of her power flow through her lips into the sound she made. A few birds and squirrels came at her call, running or flying up to the balcony. There were plenty of vines growing up the wall from the garden below, so it wasn’t a real challenge.

“Do any of you know?”

She projected her thoughts into the creatures, and they all gave their perspectives. There were no words, but Aslaug gained memories and thoughts all at once. Animals had different minds than humans, but Aslaug could interpret things. Most of the time she saw just the broken thoughts that didn’t paint a clear picture, but it was enough for her. A human figure, dressed in a cloak, went around the garden at dawn. Found the figure that was Aslaug, took her away inside. Some of the birds spotted her through the window. She’d been there all day. It was around midday now.

“Thanks.”

Most of the animals ran off, but a couple of them stayed and wanted to chat with her more. Aslaug sighed, but this happened often. In return for their help, Aslaug listened to their little animal chatter, even though it often didn’t make sense.

“You’re awake!”

Aslaug looked up to see a figure hurrying into the room. The birds chirped and hopped around. Aslaug stared at them and made out their words, standing up and putting up a strong façade despite how her body trembled from fatigue.

“So, you’re the one who brought me here.”

“Duh. And you shouldn’t be out and about! Get back to bed, missy!”

Aslaug recognized the voice, though she couldn’t be sure. It was only when a bird jumped on her head and screamed it at her that she confirmed it.

“You’re the princess?”

‘ _Nice princess! Nice princess! Nice princess!_ ’

“The…nice princess.”

She pushed her hood off her head and Aslaug finally saw the unmistakably beautiful princess. Aslaug couldn’t help it as her stomach clenched at the sight. The lady was so beautiful it was hard for Aslaug to stare at her. Aslaug herself was more than ugly in her opinion, and she made an effort to hide her face and noble identity most of the time. Her parents did give her an _okay_ complexion, but nothing she was proud of. Now, she felt self-conscious about herself compared to Svanhild.

Vaan chuckled. “The birds might call me nice, but we all know otherwise.”

“Well, the squirrels too,” Aslaug pointed out. “And the bees. And the crickets. And the other bugs and insects. And mammals.”

Vaan laughed, and it seemed to pierce through the air and stab Aslaug’s chest. This girl was dangerous because of her innocence, she decided. “You flatter me.”

Aslaug shrugged. “Not really. I mean, I’m just speaking the truth of what the animals think. I have my own opinion.”

“You can speak to animals?”

“Yeah. Well, at least, I can sense what they think, anyway. You probably don’t believe me. Not many do. But I can get the bears and the wolves on my side should the need arise, so keep that in mind.”

Vaan waved. “No, no, I believe you! I can hear them too. I thought it was just a…ya know, a princess thing. Or maybe it was my dad’s blessing. I’ve never met another so similar to I. You are wise, brave, and talented, it seems. I can only hope to live up to your legacy.”

“Legacy? No, I don’t have a legacy you should live up to.”

“How so? Tell me about yourself, Aslaug. But first, please allow me to escort you back to bed.”

Aslaug didn’t have a lot of strength left to resist, so she did as Svanhild requested. Her bed was very soft, Aslaug noted. She really shouldn’t have been surprised by it, but Aslaug couldn’t help it.

“I’ll be right back with some water. Don’t move, Lady Aslaug.”

She disappeared into another room Aslaug presumed was the bathroom while Aslaug wrapped herself in the soft sheets. She could feel even Fáfnir purring at the comforting cloth. He seemed too dazed and tried to resist the special treatment.

“Here you go.” Vaan offered a fancy cup full of cold water and Aslaug drank. “Now, tell me more of your history, Aslaug. Forgive me if you have informed me before, but I don’t recall the true reason you came to our kingdom if not to visit me specifically.”

“I came to see your family, perhaps. I’ve only recently learned the legends of Fáfnir, Sigurd, Brynhildr, Grímhildr, Gudrun, Gunnar, Atli, and…well, you too. I assumed there would be a memorial or tomb of some kind for Sigurd upon his death.”

“Oh, there is,” Vaan said. “There’s a tomb down hidden in the gardens.”

Vaan reached beneath her shirt and tugged on a leather cord. She pulled free a key from beneath her shirt, and Aslaug couldn’t help but stare. That was what she needed. Her goal was sitting less than two feet in front of her, within grabbing distance. Before she could react, Vaan slipped the key beneath her shirt again.

“There’s a tomb down beneath the palace, very far down there. I go down there every now and then, but there’s not really any point. My father’s artifacts are useless to me.”

“But you are his blood.”

She nodded. “No one really understands, but the running theory is that my father simply cursed his weapon never to be used again. I can’t even lift it. Then there’s Brynhildr’s trinkets. Once, she might have been a great warrior woman, and she has many offensive weapons to be used. But their true power is sealed away. They are just rusty blades, and no matter the magic I infuse into the trinkets, they refuse to respond. My grandmother was disappointed that I could not wield my father’s weapon nor did Brynhildr and Gunnar leave an heir to wield her own.”

“Surely there are others throughout the land eager to try their hand at worthiness of the weapons.”

Vaan nodded. “Of course there are. But the tomb is heavily enchanted. My grandmother put everything she had into the seals on that tomb, even calling upon the gods above, the demons below, and the monsters roaming the land today. I don’t understand why she was so insistent upon the defenses of that tomb. It isn’t like my father’s weapons or Brynhildr’s can be used. They are worthless at the moment. Even my father’s treasures from his many adventures are worthless. It’s like everything died with him, the power of relics that might have served him as a great king.”

“There must be someone your grandmother fears entering that tomb, perhaps the one who can activate the trinkets once more.”

“Perhaps.” Vaan ran her hand along the bed sheets beneath her. “Niflung can’t wield any of them, but I am a descendant of my father. I have to ask myself…why am I not worthy?”

Aslaug frowned, pity welling up in her heart, but it was drowned out by Fáfnir’s sudden enthusiasm.

‘ _She is our key, Aslaug. Kill her and take her key!_ ’

‘ **_We’re not killing her, Fáfnir._ **’

‘ _Why_ not?!’

“Maybe you just weren’t meant to be a fighter and that’s why the weapons don’t work for you,” Aslaug suggested. “There are plenty of other ways to be worthy, but artifacts like swords only ever see your physical prowess. You’re smart and intelligent. You could probably name twenty ways to kill a man without ever being found out simply by listing things from your garden.”

Vaan’s lips curved upwards into a gentle smile. “Thank you, Aslaug. You truly are a kind soul.”

“Kind? I wouldn’t say that. I grew up a rebellious character.”

Aslaug carefully weaved a tale of her past, being careful not to mention any names or directly mention the circumstances of her parents. Vaan listened intently to every word, her eyes sparkling with interest.

“My uncle, you see, had to transport me without anyone knowing of my existence. So he hid me within a large harp.”

“A harp?”

“I was a small child.”

“But for that man to drag you around inside a harp for days on foot? To disguise as a commoner, a poor man, and risk so much? He must love you so.”

“My uncle had to be very patient with me, it’s true. I sometimes regret resisting his wisdom and causing him so much trouble.”

“But he never gave up on you. His love for you is dear, and I’ve no doubt that the two of you have a strong bond, no matter the complications of your relationship. You both know you love each other, no matter how distant you might seem.”

“You sound like you speak from experience.”

“After my father’s death, my mother became distant. Her marriage to Atli and the subsequent tragedy that befell our family afterwards left a scar upon our relationship. It was a scar neither of us were responsible for, and yet it was something that would burden our relationship forever. I knew my mother was suffering, and yet there was nothing I could do. She knew that I was her daughter and had lost just as much as her, but her grief overtook her and there was nothing she could do.”

“Is your mother happy now?”

Vaan nodded. “I hope so. She married a kind king and had three sons, three brothers who I trust with my life. They are still young, of course, and so am I, but I know they are loyal boys who will grow up to wise and powerful men. I can’t let anymore tragedy break down her mind any further. She’s beginning to recover, but if anything else happens, I don’t think she’ll be able to go on. She was attempting to kill herself before King Jonakr found and married her. Both my mother and I were wary of him at first, but we had no premonitions like we’d had with Atli. In the end, I can accept him as my proper step-father, and I know he’ll treat my mother right so long as he lives.”

“And if ever he and his kindness were to perish, your family would fall apart once again,” Aslaug finished grimly.

Vaan chuckled harshly. “My life seems to always beget tragedy, even just _speaking_ about it.”

“It must be hard, living with such a heavy heart all the time.”

Vaan closed her eyes and exhaled. “My life, my family…it…it hurts. I feel very alone. I must be prudent in every action I take. I have no friends, no husband, or children, and I’m not sure I could really manage any of that. I’m often very quiet, I’m haunted always by my past that I just can’t shake off. No one I’ve ever met truly understands what I feel, and even if they have a semblance of the pain I’ve gone through, I have trouble believing it enough to open myself up. I’m just…tired.”

Aslaug reached out and took her hand. Her skin was soft, but her fingers were calloused from hard work in the gardens and work with her hands for alchemy. “I know it might not mean much, but I know that exhaustion, that fatigue. It haunts you day and night, and it’s not enough to make you instantly want to give up all hope. It whittles away at your willpower, but not enough to push you off the edge. You’re stuck in this eternal limbo where you don’t know what to do. Your past weighs you down but it shapes who you are. Your future is filled with infinite possibilities, but you don’t know where you want to go. I don’t know what I want to do with my past or my future, and the present is just…numb. But here I am. Wandering around, living life as life lives. I can’t tell you it’ll get better because I don’t know myself. Sorry, I’m not that good at being comforting.”

Vaan chuckled and Aslaug might have imagined it but the air itself seemed to laugh with her. “It’s okay. You did fine. You think like I do; you know that? It’s nice. To know that I’m not crazy, you know?”

Aslaug shook her head. “Well I don’t know about you, but _I’m_ crazy. Perhaps we’ll just be crazy together, use our brains and brawn to take over the world.”

Vaan laughed. “I’d love that. But then again, I don’t want to be anyone evil. My grandmother did terrible things for her own benefit and ruined her children’s lives in the process. I’m not even sure what her goals were, but she was the source of my father and Brynhildr’s tragedy, what happened to my mother and her marriage to Atli, my uncle’s deaths…all of this and she had nothing to gain.”

“Is she still around?”

“Oh, she’s old and senile now. She’s still teaching me about her sorcery, but for the most part she’s held up in her tower of the castle and no one goes in, no one goes out. She has delivery methods for the servants, but they can’t venture too far into her wing of the tower. My father and I are the only ones who ever make real contact with her. She’s going to pass soon, and she’s nearly done teaching me about her magic and stuff. Everything else she’s documented in an entire library’s worth of info, so we can only hope that if ever I need some specific spell that I don’t know, I can find it in her library.”

“Yes, let’s hope.”

“My grandfather is old; we know that he’s soon to pass. Niflung is slated to be the next king, but should he perish I am still a candidate to the throne. Though my grandfather has many bastard children who are liable to take the throne if ever they become so inclined, _I’m_ the heir to _two_ different kingdoms, so the suitors are inevitable.”

“Do you want me to chase them off for you?”

She chuckled. Aslaug found herself getting addicted to that warm laugh of hers. “No, no, it’s fine. When a lot of them meet me, I can tell when they realized they’re in over their head.”

“Careful. Some men take a shrewd woman as a challenge.”

“Oh, I know. Grandma’s teaching does come in handy sometimes.”

Aslaug talked with Vaan for as long as they could before a knock on the door from Vaan’s servants got her attention and bid her leave.

“I have to go back to my mother’s kingdom soon. How long will you be staying in this kingdom?”

“For as long as I want, honestly,” Aslaug admitted.

“I have a pair of fortnights until I take my leave. I hope to see more of you, Aslaug. I will let the servants know you are welcome in these halls any time. Should ever you require me desperately, I will come at once. And perhaps you will simply save me from my duties every now and then.”

Vaan winked and Aslaug found herself resisting a smile. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Vaan headed out and Aslaug was left in the princess’s room.

‘ _Four weeks, Aslaug? Really?_ ’

“More than enough time to win her over,” Aslaug muttered.

‘ _It would be so much simpler to just cut her down and-_ ’

‘ **_NO, Fáfnir. Maybe it is pity, maybe it is sympathy, but we will not kill her. It is easier to make friends with her and gain her trust. Having her as an ally might grant us access to more than just the royal tomb._ **’

Of course, greed was something that easily swayed Fáfnir’s heart. She could hear him grumbling back and forth as he deliberated in their head. ‘ _Fine. But just make sure this is worth it, Aslaug. If she leaves before we get what we need, my patience will wear thin and you won’t be able to stop me from getting what I want._ ’

‘ **_I know, Fáfnir. I’ve already won her over, I’m sure. We just need a few more encounters to wander through the gardens, find the tomb by accident, sneak the key, and perhaps accidentally get locked within the tomb doors because they closed under mysterious circumstances. It’s not like the doors can_ ** **move** **_without anyone_ ** **touching** **_them._ **’

She could hear Fáfnir’s smile. ‘ _And you say you aren’t malicious, dear Aslaug._ ’

‘ **_I’m doing this in the most harmless way possible. Unlike you._ **’

‘ _But psychological manipulation is so delicious! It’s almost more fun than indiscriminate slaughter!_ ’

Aslaug sighed. ‘ **_Whatever. We’re going back to sleep now._ **’

‘ _Uh-uh. I’m awake now, and if you go to sleep, it means I get to take over._ ’

Aslaug laid back on the comfy bed. Thanks to Fáfnir’s power, Aslaug didn’t technically need sleep, and every time that Aslaug _did_ go to sleep, it meant that Fáfnir had free reign to take over. The dragon never rested, and so that meant that Aslaug never got a break. She hardly ever needed one, of course, but nights without sleep were boring at times and Aslaug worried sometimes that she might go insane without some kind of sleep. Her memories were more enhanced than a normal person’s, meaning she could recall details that happened years ago in her lifetime should she need to recall the memory, and with her rarely ever getting any sleep, she could remember years’ worth of information to the precise second.

“Then do you want to go out and do something while we wait for Vaan or do we just want to sit here staring at the ceiling?”


	5. Tomb Raider! For Real This Time! Sort of...

It was another week before Aslaug finally got Vaan to let her into the tomb. It was actually far easier than she’d assumed it’d be. Once she showed curiosity in the tomb, making sure she didn’t sound _too_ interested, she and Vaan had another conversation about how Vaan felt about her parents and the artifacts that were held down below.

“I’m sure that it’s only a matter of time before you can wield the weapons. Maybe you’re just not ready yet.”

“Do you wanna see them?” Vaan asked. “It’s time for me to go and make my rounds down there anyway.”

“Your rounds?”

“I say my prayers to my father every cycle of the moon, when it shines at its fullest.”

“Ah, I see. Are you sure you want me there during something so important?”

Vaan chuckled. “Well, I’ve been tricked into letting people down there before. It never mattered. Just as the artifacts reject me, they reject others as well. However, there are stubborn men and women. The weapons react with hostility to those who demonstrate corrupt auras. If you’re some kind of spy, just know that my father’s sword has blasted many men to dust. Even if they’re strong enough to not disintegrate instantly, they won’t be walking out without permanent damage.”

“Don’t worry about me. I’m a tough girl.”

“I’m sure. Well, just know that if you touch them, they’ll probably kill you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Vaan led her down the tomb’s long path downwards. Vaan explained that the tomb had been built to store all sorts of trials and challenges, but after learning that the weapons could defend themselves, Vaan and her family didn’t bother wasting the resources to put up security that wasn’t necessary. And so, the end result was that the placed looked like a neat yet old abandoned part of the castle.

“I suppose you could say that,” Vaan admitted. “It _is_ a part of the castle, abandoned underground passages. We just fixed up some of the old passages, but long before I was ever born and my grandfather ever ruled, this castle was made with many nooks and crannies.”

“My uncle’s mansion is much the same. Secret passages, underground, through the walls - it’s a common theme it seems.”

“It’s for safety’s sake, I assume. And it’s useful for the servants to know these passages. We have to be really careful with who we hire, but in return our servants are better prepared to both do their job and protect against intruders.”

Aslaug couldn’t argue with that. She had always used those passages same as the servants to get around her house. They had always seemed mysterious and Aslaug felt powerful knowing things that strangers did not. She and some of the servants would play around sometimes, and though they’d get in trouble with her uncle sometimes, Aslaug always took the blame since she knew that she didn’t want to have other servants playing with her if ever her father decided to get rid of them.

Aslaug had already memorized the passages, but she let Vaan lead the way. There were a few twists and turns and caverns that weren’t necessarily maze-like, but they were hard to navigate without some assistance. Vaan took paths that Aslaug hadn’t even considered because she had just used her powers to cut corners without thinking about it. One open room, for example, had multiple levels of platforms and a clear door about halfway up. There were perches and paths that led even above the doorway, and so there were multiple ways to get to the door if a great leap or a dangerous fall weren’t a big concern - which they weren’t for Aslaug.

By the time they finally reached the stubborn door Aslaug hadn’t been able to pass before, Vaan had pulled free her key and tugged it over her head.

“The tomb is nothing special,” Vaan admitted.

She pushed the key into place, and Aslaug could barely contain Fáfnir’s excitement. The doors slowly slid open, the rumbling machinery complex but in working order. By the time the door had opened, a passageway big enough for one person at a time was left. Vaan headed inside, waving for Aslaug to follow, which she did. Fáfnir’s excitement was almost painful as his eagerness pushed at her chest. Fáfnir had stopped speaking and had simply started pushing his mental thoughts upon Aslaug - his feelings and passions that Aslaug’s soul conflicted with. He wanted that treasure, he wanted it badly. He wanted to show off, he wanted so much that there were no words for it.

“Settle down,” Aslaug hissed.

“What?” Vaan asked.

“Nothing.”

Fáfnir’s emotions were physically hurting Aslaug, and she wouldn’t be able to keep him contained. If Fáfnir broke free, Vaan could be in danger, and beyond just her, Aslaug wasn’t sure how long it’d be before she’d be able to take control again. Once someone took the wheel, it was very hard for the other to emerge. Fáfnir was at a disadvantage since it wasn’t his body technically, but that didn’t mean that Aslaug couldn’t be held back once Fáfnir got the upper hand.

“This is it,” Vaan said. Aslaug was glad for her calming voice, because it helped ease the pain of fighting Fáfnir’s urges just a bit. “Nothing special, really, but…I guess I get a little emotional when I come down here. It’s stupid.”

“This is your father’s tomb,” Aslaug said. “There’s nothing wrong with mourning a loved one.”

“But I barely knew him. I was still a child when he died. It’s sad to say, but I can’t even remember his face, and his voice has long since faded from my mind. I’m sure I remember _some_ things, but the odds that my memories are heavily distorted from the original source are very high.”

“Even greater a reason for your sadness when you come here. Your father was…well, he was a future that was lost to you. He was a future with a stable family and a great role model and a wonderful king.”

Aslaug placed her hand on the stone casket in the center of the room. She could feel power from within, but as Aslaug’s mind wandered, she felt an overwhelming sadness. Perhaps it was just her imagination, perhaps she wasn’t really feeling it at all, but a maddening hatred and regret flowed through her, overpowering even Fáfnir.

“Right here? This is a tomb filled with infinite possibilities. An infinite number of futures that have been denied to you, but an infinite number of futures that _could_ have existed. Right here is infinite power, Svanhild. Infinity, right here at your fingertips.”

Vaan chuckled. She ambled around the edges of the room where carvings of Sigurd and Brynhildr’s lives were depicted. “Infinity, you say? That’s a nice way of saying I lost everything, that I had so much to lose.”

“I never really knew my parents,” Aslaug recited. She’d made sure that she’d practiced her story a million times so that there were no mistakes when she spoke to Vaan. “My uncle raised me, and I loved him, but my parents…I can’t help but wonder what might have been different if they’d stayed with me. My uncle tells me that they didn’t leave me on purpose, but…”

“You can’t help but wonder,” Vaan finished.

Aslaug nodded.

Vaan joined Aslaug at their father’s tomb. Both Sigurd and Brynhildr shared a tomb, and the casket technically wasn’t built to hold a body since both Sigurd and Brynhildr’s bodies had been burnt. Instead, it was built to hold weapons and trinkets of their lifetime. Vaan held her hand over the casket lid and it flashed with energy. Runes appeared on the stone, and Aslaug read some of them that depicted a sealing spell.

“My grandmother built this so Niflung and I could retrieve the heirlooms of my father one day.”

“That’s some big responsibility, looking after a tomb like this.”

‘ _So close…_ ’ Fáfnir seemed to whisper. ‘ _Just get_ on _with it!_ ’

“I’m afraid of the contents inside,” Vaan admitted. “It’s stupid. I don’t really know why I’m afraid. There’s nothing to fear, really.”

Aslaug rested her hand on Vaan’s, hoping it wasn’t trembling as she held Fáfnir back from clawing the princess to death for stalling even longer. “There’s nothing wrong with it. Bearing the burden of our families…we all go through that. Royals have it hard. They’re always at risk of being usurped or overthrown or just getting bad luck from the gods one day. You’re handling this whole thing better than a lot might.”

Vaan laughed bitterly. “Is that so? I wouldn’t have ever guessed.”

“It’s true. You’re the most noble, strongest, wisest, loveliest person I’ve ever known. I’ve met some rotten apples before, and you aren’t one of them.”

Vaan exhaled as she stared into Aslaug’s eyes. “Thanks, Aslaug. Now, are you ready to see the amazing treasures of my father? Just be careful not to touch them, all right?”

Aslaug nodded. “Right.”

Vaan activated the runes and removed the lock. Aslaug heard the tomb’s wards falling before her powers exploded. It happened so quickly that Aslaug barely had time to process what occurred. Looking back, there was nothing she could’ve done to stop it, but she should’ve at least seen it coming.

“Vaan!”

She went flying through the door of the tomb as the doors were also closing as well. Aslaug heard her head hit something hard as she was thrust through and the doors were slammed shut and locked. Vaan’s key clinked to the floor in front of the door. Aslaug’s vision went blurry as she felt Fáfnir taking over, and there was no stopping him. She hoped that Vaan was okay. That was her last thought before she faded back into the recesses of her mind and the dragon took over.

Aslaug dreamt of a palace. Faerie, she knew, though she didn’t know how. Her vision moved without her consent, taking her through a glowing forest that chittered around her as even the flora appeared to breathe. She was taken to a dark place, a dungeon, and there she saw Finnegan tied up, beaten and battered, all the light in his eyes extinguished. There was shouting, but Aslaug couldn’t make out anything. Fionn was there, at his side. There were tears, screams, and sobs. Fionn was taken away, or rather, he walked away willingly in exchange for Finnegan’s bonds to be removed. He was left lying there, unable to move on his own anyway from the pain. Fionn left despite not wanting to, gritting his teeth at his hopeless situation.

‘ **_Please, Aslaug. I’m begging you. Help him._ **’

“Fionn!”

Aslaug shot awake into the darkness.

She saw nothing at first, but then her sleep-induced daze began to fade, and she summoned her powers when she remembered that they existed. Her vision grew accustomed to the night and her radius began sending her information on her surroundings. She was in a forest, pretty deep into the forest. Nighttime, many hours had passed since she’d last been aware of herself.

“Fáfnir?” she asked.

For once in her life, the dragon didn’t answer her call.

Fáfnir always complained about being stuck inside Aslaug’s mind and unable to interact with the real world when Aslaug was constantly in charge. He took every opportunity that he could to speak with Aslaug because otherwise it felt like he didn’t exist. Aslaug could punish Fáfnir for doing something rude or mean by keeping him within her mind and blocking him into a little corner of her mind so that he couldn’t read her thoughts, so that she couldn’t make out any of his words and could just hear faint, muffled screaming. Loneliness was scary enough, but without a physical body, it was pure torture. Aslaug had heard rumors about some people using isolation as a system of psychological torture. She herself didn’t like using that technique because Fáfnir’s muffled screams made her feel bad and when he finally gave up and she could feel a faint disturbance in him once he’d began to break, she let him out again.

In all honesty, Aslaug didn’t know what she’d do if she had her mind all to herself. It was a feeling that would be too foreign for her to fully appreciate. Sure, she complained all the time that things might be easier if Fáfnir wasn’t in her head, but at the same time she couldn’t imagine life without him. His nagging had become so common that she had actually adjusted to it, even enjoyed it at times. She and Fáfnir were slowly starting to get along. And so, once the dragon was gone, Aslaug wasn’t sure what to do.

Aslaug stood and checked her clothing. If Fáfnir had done some kind of transformation, even a partial one, Aslaug’s clothes would have ripped from the strain. A semi-transformation when Aslaug managed to hold Fáfnir back at the last moment still caused Aslaug to grow to a 5-meter-tall monster with iron skin, and she’d learned to make her own clothes and buy cheap ones since she lost a lot of clothes thanks to Fáfnir.

Aslaug began to expand her radius and walked forward, searching for where she was. It didn’t take her as long as she found that she wasn’t far from the palace of King Gjúki where she had last seen Svanhild. She tested her powers and found that they were all working despite Fáfnir refusing to answer her mental calls. She clenched her fist and summoned a glamour to make herself invisible. She still needed kinesthetic activations for her powers despite Fáfnir saying that she shouldn’t need to move any part of her body for her power to activate, but it helped her concentrate. She pushed off the ground and focused her efforts on hovering herself in the air. She could only go as far up as her radius would allow her, but that was still a great distance if she used it correctly. 15 meters was impressive, Fáfnir told her, but she could still go further, he urged. He was talking kilometers, which Aslaug sincerely doubted would ever be possible, but he let the dragon and his ego dream.

Aslaug flew over the palace walls, sticking her radius to whatever she needed to pull herself up and move around faster than just flying on her own. She flew up the palace walls, searching for Vaan’s room, until she finally saw Vaan’s familiar room. She pushed her radius to open the balcony doors and then touched down, slipping inside and deactivating her glamour. She carefully made her way over to Vaan’s bed, finding the princess sleeping peacefully. She was still dressed in her day clothes rather than her night clothes.

“Vaan,” Aslaug whispered lightly. She wasn’t sure if she wanted Vaan to wake up, and so her words came out softer than she’d expected. “Svanhild.”

‘ _Don’t wake her._ ’

‘ **_Fáfnir!_ **’

‘ _Don’t sound so surprised, Aslaug._ ’

‘ **_Forgive me if I get a little unnerved when you don’t answer me. Who_ ** **knows** **_what you could be plotting in there?_ **’

‘ _Nevermind that. We have what we wanted. Time to go. I’d rather not have the princess incriminating us when she wakes up. I’ve managed to erase her memories of the event. As far as she was aware, she opened the tomb and then both of you were blasted back. You took her back to her room and bid her farewell. Now let’s get out of there before she wakes up and starts asking questions._ ’

‘ **_Was it really necessary for you to go all-out like that? Geez, I knew you were a maniac, but this is just stupid. What did you even_ ** **do** **_, anyway? I don’t have any new weapons or anything on me right now._ **’

‘ _You’ll see, dear Aslaug. When you’re ready._ ’

‘ **_When I’m_ ** **ready?** **_You’re_ ** **always** **_pushing me to the limits and can never wait for me to get some new power boost so that you can have me play around with it. What is_ ** **wrong** **_with you, Fáfnir?_ **’

‘ _Nothing’s_ wrong _with me. Listen, I’ll explain later, but right now we need to get out of here. If we let Svanhild be on her lonesome for a while, we can pretend that you left and are making a visit. She’ll remember the majority of your previous visit, but she won’t remember your parting and she won’t really care. You can come back once she’s had some time to fully forget what happened._ ’

‘ **_I’ll hold you to that._ **’

‘ _Until that day, we can train you up to use your new power._ ’

‘ **_Why do I have this terrible feeling about what you mean when you say you want me to train up my power?_ **’

‘ _Because you’re_ always _like that, Aslaug._ ’

‘ **_For good reason._ **’

Aslaug headed over to the balcony and reactivated her powers to silently sneak out of the palace grounds. Once she was far enough away, she began walking on foot back on the road to her uncle’s mansion.

“Guess we’re going home now.”

The roads at night were empty, though Aslaug did see the occasional traveler resting through the night to eventually get back on their feet at daybreak. A dangerous thing, sleeping on a road like this. They were asking to get robbed by bandits. Granted, Aslaug didn’t see anyone else awake for as far as she could see.

‘ _I’m going to teach you a new technique,_ ’ Fáfnir said.

“Right _now?_ Fáfnir, could you at _least_ do some explaining? What happened after I blacked out in the tomb?”

‘ _I took the powers of your parents, Aslaug. And if you ever want to learn how to use your parents’ trinkets to their full extent, you’re going to have to let me take the lead._ ’

“You act as though you have any control over whether or not I want to use that power. You just want me to learn the power so that you and I can be stronger than other opponents, so why hold back the information? It’s not like you. It’s smart, trying to hold some semblance of power over me when I’m in control most of the time, but you’re _never_ that smart. Too brash and impulsive.”

‘ _Please, Aslaug, have more faith in me._ ’

“Ugh, no. Not when you say it like that. You’re _far_ too suspicious right now for me to let you take _any_ kind of lead. No matter the power boost or whatever.”

Fáfnir sighed. ‘ _Aslaug, you’ll have to let me teach you_ one _day. Just remember, we’ve got an eternity with each other._ ’

“Yeah, yeah. Look, did you see my dream from before? I have a really bad feeling about it.”

‘ _Dunno. Maybe. I was a bit busy working with the artifacts to learn about their power and making it compatible with you._ ’

“Listen, Fionn and Finnegan…I’m worried they’re in trouble.”

‘ _Honestly, the first time they get some alone time to have sex and they get kidnapped._ ’

“You think that it was kidnapping?”

‘ _I’m going through your memories to see the dream. Looks like a hostage situation to me._ ’

“So the faeries captured Finnegan and took Fionn’s family took hostage. To do what? Torture him back into the family?”

‘ _Breaking his spirit and making him cruel as a faerie should be. A simple plan._ ’

“What about the humanity he might have gained? Humanity is hard to destroy, and it is very versatile. They must know about his humanity, and they must understand the dangers of humanity.”

‘ _Faeries are complicated creatures. Breaking humanity is a skill they have developed over years. They know the unpredictability of humanity when it infects other creatures, and they are experts that studying and adapting to situations._ ’

“Faeries are great psychologists who use their powers for evil. Wonderful. But if Fionn is a faerie, that means he knows exactly what might happen to him.”

‘ _Yes, and his captors know that. But humanity is dangerous to Fionn, a glass cannon. It will only hurt him in this instance._ ’

“He will hold on with the small hope that Finnegan can be rescued or that I’ll be coming. We just have to hope the faeries don’t push things too far and break him before then. Keeping Finnegan alive will be more useful to them, but he’s in no position to be doing any mental preparation. They’re going to break him.”

‘ _I’d love to argue with you, but that would mean I’d need to be positive about something, so nah._ ’

Aslaug scoffed and began running down the trail to get home, activating her powers so that she could run at inhuman speeds without any consequences. Making it home wasn’t a problem, and the small hope she had about her dream being just a dream or at the very least being even further in the future were dashed when her trusted servants explained the situation.

Aslaug’s uncle had been working on a solution to the problem, but he’d mostly been waiting for Aslaug to return so that a big deal wasn’t made out of the situation and because he wanted to know her opinion. He knew she was strong, he still trusted her, and that had gained him a mutual respect that both of them understood.

“I’m going after them,” Aslaug declared. “Don’t sound the alarm until my head has been returned on a stake by the faeries, all right? You know that time is said to work differently in Faerie. I could be gone a day and a month could pass. Just say Finnegan and I are going on a discreet trip to…”

“One of the summer houses,” her uncle filled in. “You wanted a vacation alone, and so you told no one which one you were going to except for the servants that were following you.”

“In this case, the only servant we brought would be Fionn. But it works. I’m counting on you to keep things from getting out of hand. We don’t need any big issues drawing notoriety.”

“Agreed. Good luck, Aslaug.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

With permission to leave, Aslaug began her journey. She pondered how lucky she was to have an uncle who understood and accepted her as well as he did.

“Right, so what was this about some new powers that you wanted to teach me, Fáfnir?”


	6. Master

Aslaug spent her time traveling and training with Fáfnir, who was still very cryptic about what he wanted from her. Aslaug had to do some asking around and some research to find an entrance to Faerie. It wasn’t easy to find information on a mystical realm that some humans were skeptical about or even didn’t believe in. Luckily, the majority of people believed in such things and there were often those who did their research on faeries and their ways.

“That’s quite a ways,” Aslaug muttered.

“It’s the only location that I’ve confirmed to hold an entrance to Faerie at a consistent rate.”

Aslaug’s information aid was a scholar of Faerie, and she’d had a bout of luck finding him as quickly as she did. During her free time, she was constantly seeking out someone who knew anything about entrances to Faerieland and anything about the hierarchy there. In her frustration, she did some training that Fáfnir recommended to prepare herself.

‘ _ You’ll most likely be facing a horde of the strongest and most cunning faeries hired and working for the court, _ ’ Fáfnir had said.

‘ **_If we end up crossing the court without paying the price, we’ll most likely be hunted forever._ ** ’

‘ _ You  _ could _ strike a deal with them, but they are unlikely to accept a bargain where they  _ lose _ everything, and you  _ gain _ everything. They know you won’t die any time soon, but being within Faerie might work against you in that respect. _ ’

‘ **_Anything and everything can be used against me and there’s nothing I can do about it but try and be careful to avoid crossing too many._ ** ’

‘And _ you can look to my training to make sure that the faeries fear you. We could turn the tides yet. They win through cunning and deceit, making sure that they are in control of a situation. Condition-based curses are the most common method of subjugation. But if you are too strong to be beaten by any level of magic, nothing will stand in your way. _ ’

‘ **_No weaknesses mean that no one will be able to take anyone that I love again._ ** ’

‘ _ Exactly. See, Aslaug? We’re not that different. _ ’

‘ **_Everyone has something they care for that they don’t want to lose under any circumstances, Fáfnir. It doesn’t mean that you’re still more obsessive than I am. To a dangerous extent. I don’t want to hurt anyone just to show off my power. I just want the strength to make sure that nothing and no one will threaten my family._ ** ’

So that was how Aslaug began to start training under Fáfnir’s proper guidance rather than doing the training mostly on her own. Fáfnir was a demanding teacher, and when Aslaug had exhausted herself, Fáfnir had the strength to take control of her when she was weaker. He would push her to her limits whether she liked it or not. But Aslaug knew that she hadn’t make a mistake. It had been a long time since Fáfnir was reborn into Aslaug; she had changed him from his original personality enough that he complied with her demands even when she was in no position to fight back. He didn’t kill, he didn’t destroy anything human related like buildings or farms (at least intentionally), and he knew when to stop to make sure that Aslaug didn’t suffer any permanent damage herself. He would say it was because he was stuck in Aslaug and he’d rather have her than anyone else, and no matter how passive he was about it, Aslaug knew that he cared from the heart.

“It’s only a day’s walk from here,” Aslaug guessed.

‘ _ At normal speeds, perhaps. _ ’

“Forgive me if you wiped me out yesterday. I’d rather not waste anymore than I have to just on the trip  _ to _ Faerieland. I want to get to Finn and Fionn as soon as possible, but I won’t be any use to them if I run in blindly while already half dead. We’ll figure out some of the details while we walk. We’ll make it to our goal by sundown. There’s really no difference between day and night in Faerie, so worrying about nighttime isn’t that high a priority.”

‘ _ Walking at normal speeds is boring, _ ’ Fáfnir whined.

“Yeah, well learn to deal with it. We can get running in a few moments. I’m almost recovered, all right?”

‘ _ Do you hear that? _ ’

Aslaug looked up and finally heard the swoosh in the air and a long sustained shout that Aslaug had almost dismissed because it had lasted longer than any normal scream would, as though the person who was making the noise had no need for air and had no restraints on their volume level.

“Masteeeeeeer!”

Aslaug jumped back as someone fell to the ground in front of her. She was a composed person, so she didn’t so much freak out as she did raise an eyebrow. The person was covered by a pure white traveling cloak that remained spotless despite landing harshly in the grass. They were lying face down on their stomach from their belly-flop landing, and Aslaug wondered for a moment if they were dead. She dismissed the idea when she sensed both their life force and a magical aura she couldn’t quite place. Aslaug wasn’t surprised anymore by the supernatural. She’d gotten over that a long time ago.

“Hey,” she prodded. “ _ Hey! _ ” She gently kicked the person to wake them. “Are you okay? Respond.”

A muffled “Umphf!” reverberated from the person, muffled by the ground.

Aslaug scoffed. “So you  _ are _ alive.”

Aslaug knelt and moved to roll the person over, but they jumped to their feet the moment she touched them with clearly inhuman speed.

“Master!” a smooth voice called out.

There was a hint of a familiar accent, though Aslaug couldn’t place where she’d heard it before. It caused the word ‘Master’ to be pronounced more like ‘Mast-a!’

“You talking to me?” Aslaug asked, rising to her feet without haste.

“Yes! Master is Master!”

She blinked. She wasn’t expecting them to say yes. She thought maybe they’d woken up from some kind of dream of their master or mistook Aslaug for their master waking them up from the harsh fall. When Aslaug got a good look at the person, she was surprised. White hair stuck out from the hood of the traveling cloak, blending near seamlessly if it weren’t for the shadows cast by the hood. The person had smooth skin and a lean face with almond eyes, holding themself at attention without any signs of injury.

“ _ Oriental _ ,” Aslaug realized aloud. “ _ That’s _ the accent.”

The person smiled brightly. “ _ Hai! _ I hail from Japan, Master.”

“Why are you calling me ‘Master?’ I’ve never met you before. I’m sure I’d remember someone like you.”

“I serve Lord Fáfnir. Master is Lord Fáfnir. Master is you!”

Aslaug stared at the ball of sunshine personified that was the man in white. His upper half beneath his cloak was white, while his pants were a modest gray. His traveling boots were white as well with black laces tying them tight. His outfit looked cheap on the outside, but with its pristine condition there was no mistaking he was unordinary - magically or as simply a noble person who had the money to be parading around in clean white clothes.

“Fáfnir?” Aslaug asked, not as a question of clarification, but as a confirmation directed at the dragon himself.

‘ _ Hm, I’m thinking. Ah. Yes. I remember now. Aslaug, this is…well, how to put it? This is a member of my cult. _ ’

Aslaug frowned. “You have a  _ cult? _ ”

‘ _ Of course I did! There are  _ always _ those weird humans who begin to worship higher powers, rather than cower in fear. I can’t tell if they are the best of your kind or the worst. _ ’

“I’m gonna go with the latter considering anyone who worships  _ you _ has  _ got _ to be insane.”

“Insane, yes Master!” the cult member declared. She’d almost forgotten they were there. “Lord Fáfnir has few servants, but they are trusted and respected for their dedication.”

Aslaug crossed her arms. “I’m surprised you have servants, considering how possessive you are of your stuff.”

‘ _ It was an accident, really. A little man walked into my cave and declared he wanted to serve me. I asked his price and intended to kill him, but instead he just asked that he get to serve a dragon. He did whatever I told him without fail, even the idiotic or challenging things. So I amused him and let him stay. Then some other humans joined in and I commanded the first one to be in charge of the rest and make sure that there were no traitors or anything. I must have blessed him with something to make sure that he had the power to do all the leg work while I got to relax in my cave with my treasure all day. _ ’

“I’m guessing, based on the vagueness of this blessing, that you didn’t know the full extent of what you did.”

‘ _ Nope. Come to think of it, this person reminds me of that first little man. So bubbly and happy despite the horrors I made him face at times. Normal humans would have run for the hills, but not him. It wasn’t even an act, either. He surprised me. Perhaps that was why I took a liking to him. And he was loyal, I’ll give him that. _ ’

“So this might be your original servant?” Aslaug concluded.

‘ _ Yes, perhaps. Eternal life, enhanced endurance and stamina, a rapid metabolism and healing factor…so many things could have developed out of my blessing. Basically, a weaker version of what you have since you and I are directly one rather than a simple blessing giving a fraction of my power. _ ’

“Because, gods forbid, you’d ever give your power to anyone but yourself, really.”

‘ _ Exactly. _ ’

“Master is very protective of his possessions, it’s true,” the servant said.

Aslaug shook her head. “Right, what to do about you. Look, I’m in a bit of a hurry here. What’s your name?”

“Master may call me what he pleases.”

“Don’t you have a name?”

“I was born with no name, Master.”

“Fáfnir?”

‘ _ I’m trying to recall. Yes, I knew you before. Curry? Korea? _ ’

“Kuria,” the person corrected.

Fáfnir gave a little click and Aslaug realized he’d snapped - something that shouldn’t have been possible both for a dragon and for a presence in Aslaug’s head, but perhaps her human tendencies were rubbing off on him and he was picking up human habits.

‘ _ Yes! Kurry-Korea-Kuria! I always got it wrong. _ ’

“In that order,” Kuria added.

‘ _ Kuria is a djinn. No real gender, but I’ve called him a man so we can go with that. As far as I can tell, he was abandoned by the other djinn community and taken in by a human man. He knows very little about his abilities, but he's powerful without even realizing it. His human kept him hidden from other humans and told him to hide his identity, and therefore he grew up very odd. _ ’

“By human standards, you mean. Nothing odd enough for me to get worried about. Anyway, we can talk about this later. We have somewhere to be.”

“Master is going somewhere?” Kuria asked.

“I have someone to save, maybe two someones.”

“I will accompany you, Master.”

‘ _ He might be useful as a target for the enemy to aim for, _ ’ Fáfnir agreed.

Aslaug sighed. “Fine. Whatever.”

‘ _ Ooo. You’re far more agreeable when you’re stressed. _ ’

“I’ll kick his ass if I need to, but right now, I don’t have the energy to care what he does. Keep up if you don’t want to be left behind.”

Aslaug began running at a fast pace, and Kuria ran after her with surprising speed. He easily ran at her pace, and so she sped up to go at her fastest for the urgency of the situation.

“Where are we going, Master?” Kuria asked, not even straining to breathe as they ran at inhuman speeds.

“The fey courts. We need to find the king of Faerie and his court. I have a couple of friends who need me.”

Aslaug led her new…err servant through the forest and to the moors that she knew led to Faerieland. Faerie, as Fionn had explained to her, was a complicated place. It was always moving, never stable on a physical or magical plane. Time would pass differently and fluctuate faster or slower at random intervals. Entrances and exits were on and off, and within Faerie even places in the human world could be relocated - or at least given the illusion of relocating with Faerie being too close. Fionn had spoken fondly of beautiful nature and the greatest of dangers. She wondered sometimes if he missed his home, that the human world was too dull and foreign and dulling his edge.

But Aslaug had never known why he had run away, not really. She had known Fionn had a fall out with his family, she knew the fey were cruel but noble creatures, but she had never thought them so low that they would harm someone who wasn’t involved in their affairs. It was very easy to cross a faerie; anything could be used against you in their eyes, so breathing the wrong way might incite their wrath, Fionn had explained. Finnegan had an appreciation for faeries, a deep respect for everything they stood for, and Finnegan had been careful to learn about what offended faeries from Fionn so that he avoided such conflicts. Then again, by being in love with Fionn, perhaps that made Finnegan a part of whatever conflict Fionn had. It was more than enough either way, and there was no higher power that could stop them from doing what they wanted. Especially if Fionn was the son of a king, it meant that technically the higher powers wanted to make them suffer. And Aslaug had nothing to protect her or her family if she got on their bad side.

But that didn’t matter. Finnegan was technically her husband, meaning by taking him, she was a part of this. Fionn was her friend, practically a brother in every way except blood. And she would not leave them to die - or worse, to suffer eternally at the hands of his family.

Kuria was curious, and so Aslaug three caution to the wind and explained the relationship between her, Finnegan, and Fionn. Kuria listened intently but didn’t react much at all or ask questions, or even any noises of acknowledgment. Kuria certain  _ was _ weird by human standards, but to Aslaug it was a breath of fresh air.

“Be careful, Master,” Kuria warned. “We have entered the realm of the fey.”

“I know.”

Aslaug had felt the shift in the air, the heavy atmosphere that was almost suffocating to those who could sense magic. As a djinn, Aslaug assumed Kuria could sense the enchanted lands strongly. It was like the air was burning and breathing became hard, a heavy weight resting on the chest.

“We need to find the Faerie court before anything else happens to my friends.”

“I know these lands well, Master,” Kuria said. “Please, allow me to guide you.”

“You know these lands?”

“Yes. I have lived here for a long time. Ever since my grandfather died, or somewhere around that time.”

“Grandfather?”

‘ _ His human that raised him, _ ’ Fáfnir explained. ‘ _ An old man he calls “Grandfather.” If the man had a real name, Kuria didn’t know it or didn’t ever bother to remember it. _ ’

Kuria nodded. “My grandfather raised me since I was a child. He was very wise and very kind. He taught me about good and bad. He said that people thought I was bad because of my face, and so I hid it at his bidding.”

Aslaug admitted that she hadn’t been able to see the whole of her new comrade’s face, but it hadn’t really occurred to her until he pointed it out. She realized that he was wearing a glamour across his face, light and perception-based - meaning that so long as you weren’t focusing, the glamour was able to go unnoticed even by the most skilled magic-users because it was so low-level. Those kinds of glamours were useful to know, but risky; if someone saw through the glamour, there’d be no reapplying it. Once they knew what to look for.

Djinns weren’t like humans, not in their purest forms anyway. They could disguise themselves, but most djinns lived in another dimension more suited to their needs. It was very similar to humankind, but different in the obvious sense that djinns weren’t human and operated on a more aristocratic level. They had royalty and nobles and peasantry and common folk. Unlike humans, however, they had far less conflict and all operated by the same logic, even if that logic was a little more fantastical than with humans. One might call them a perfect society, if a dull and unchanging one. Many djinns were said to be pretty human, or so Aslaug had heard. Maybe they were imitating more humans when they realized their value.

The difference between their world and the human world is so great that most of them can’t maintain full forms when in the human realm, and so they often appear as small humans or children - in terms of magical energies and capabilities, djinns were top-tier players. It was unclear whether djinns were considered good or evil; they had the potential for both and were often associated with spirits or demons. They had no individuality on their own, and so taking on human forms, no matter how limited, gave their diversity. Often transforming into a human state left them as anthropomorphized creatures. Those who could disguise fully as humans were royalty of the djinns, servants of royalty, nobility, etc.

Regular djinns were summoned by witches and soothsayers all the time for their magical inhumane skills, and the barrier between the world of djinns and that of humans was bypassed so often that there were rumors as to whether djinns originated in the human world and were simply very well hidden. They were willing to make deals good or bad for the right price, but they mostly have fun in the human world rather than look for any kind of purposeful evil.

There were any number of reasons that this djinn could be in the human world, going to work for a dragon, no less. Fáfnir  _ did _ say he was a bit weird, but being a djinn would only have a little to do with that in the long run. Most djinns were perceptive enough to know about the human world - they studied it just as there were humans that studied the supernatural worlds. Fáfnir said that Kuria was abandoned by his kind, but why? And what did being raised by a human do to change him?

“Are you afraid of your appearance?” Aslaug asked.

Kuria hesitated. “I am not afraid. I don’t think.”

“You don’t think?”

“Grandfather told me many things that humans fear and how they react to that which they fear. It is very hard to change a human’s mind about something. I have avoided humans because of this. I am not sure if I fear my appearance because my grandfather never judged me for what I look like and there’s hope that perhaps others might not as well. All humans are different, he told me. They are complicated. I do not fear them because I have not yet found a true reason to be afraid.”

“Do you worry I will judge you?”

“Master never judges me. Nor the others. They never judge me.”

“The rest of the cult, I presume. The ones who care not for appearances or unholiness. They only care about the power they can gain by following a supernatural leader. Figures. Normal humans aren’t all bad, but in the society they are raised in, they can’t be all good, either. I won’t judge you, Kuria, and I won’t force you to show your face if that makes you uncomfortable.”

Kuria smiled brightly. “Master is wise and benevolent as ever!”

Aslaug sighed. “So how long have you been serving Fáfnir?”

“Oh, many years. Too many to count. I thought Master had died around 250 cycles ago. I was alone for a long time.”

‘ _ What did you do to occupy yourself during my absence, Kuria? _ ’ Fáfnir asked.

Aslaug was about to open her mouth to repeat the question, but Kuria spoke up. “Nothing, Master.”

‘ _ Heavens, child, did you simply wait in the cave for twenty years until you sensed my growing power? _ ’

Kuria nodded. “Yes, Master.”

Fáfnir sighed. ‘ _ Well, I suppose that’s to be expected of you. You had absolutely nothing else to do and very little willpower of your own to seek out anything. _ ’

“You can communicate with each other,” Aslaug stated.

Kuria nodded. “Master’s power within me connects to Master’s power within Master.”

“I suppose that’s why I feel comfortable with you, as though I’ve known you for longer than I presume. Fáfnir’s feelings towards you are neutral, perhaps even fond. He is less annoyed by you and rather amused.”

‘ _ More like  _ be _ mused. _ ’

Aslaug sighed. “It might be nice to have someone else who can hear Fáfnir around. Odd, yes, but not entirely detrimental.”

‘ _ Yes, but unlike with Kuria, you and I can never get out of each other’s heads. At least I can block Kuria out of the conversation if I so please. Kuria takes orders very well; consider him as nothing but a lifeless being without a free will of his own. Believe me, I tried to ward him off several times, but he needs a master to tell him what to do or he will literally just sit there blankly without motivation or reason. _ ’

“Master once told me to go and do what I desired, and so I sat in front of his cave until Master noticed me and bid me to run an errand,” Kuria agreed.

‘ _ I had to keep him busy, so making him in charge of keeping a cult from going off the rails was better than nothing. _ ’

“But he was in no position to be a leader,” Aslaug pointed out. She looked up at Kuria. “If you have little will and desire of your own, how could you act as an independent leader of multiple humans?”

‘ _ Oh, don’t underestimate Kuria. Just because he has no will of his own doesn’t mean that he is incapable. I could demand he find the elixir of life and by the gods he’d find a way. He’s very intelligent when he needs to be, resourceful and adaptable. Tell him to win a fight and he will, no matter what. Tell him to find an impossible mythical object and he’d find a way. I tell him to lead a functioning organization and he can. I have to be consulted on some things that require my opinions, but he seems to instinctively be given the tools and knowledge needed to accomplish his task, regardless of whether he was formerly prepared to do such a thing in the first place. _ ’

“Djinns have that ability,” Aslaug recalled. “As do many demons and supernatural creatures. Making a deal with certain creatures allows them to trade something - such as a soul - to gain the necessary skills to finish the job. Find an impossible-to-find person? A demon can take a soul and transform it into the power needed to do the impossible, if temporarily. Demons and such are like tools themselves, machines able to use deals to acquire skills. I suppose by bonding himself to you as a servant, he gained the ability to do anything that you requested of him so long as you requested it. It’s an interesting power, no doubt, and a useful one if used the right way. Humans always have to give something in return, something on the level of a spirit or a soul because that is the most powerful level of magic that a human is naturally given. Most can’t harness their soul or spirit energy directly - though it’s entirely possible - and the only way they can really make use of their soul is by giving it away. Their only currency is everything they have, and djinns are naturally equipped with that odd ability to grant wishes by any means necessary. Often called ‘genies’ for that very reason. Having a djinn on our side is looking more and more useful, indeed.”

“Thank you for you praise, Master.”

“Well, Kuria, right now we need to rescue Finnegan and Fionn by any means necessary and get them to safety. I don’t know what we’ll be facing, but we cannot afford to fail.”

“Yes Master!”

Hopefully, the magic that allowed djinns to fulfill their orders still worked with Aslaug and Kuria.

They hurried through the forests, still at their high speeds, working to avoid touching anything that they could avoid - including the ground. They could be condemned for killing ants or swatting small bugs in the air, Aslaug knew, so she demanded that Kuria keep watch and make sure they did nothing that faeries might condemn them for later. Kuria had to save Aslaug from hitting something a couple times, and she hoped that was a sign that his power was working.

“This is where they are?” Aslaug asked.

What laid before them was a heavily fortified castle tower, surrounded by a wall of thorns. It was as though no light could even pierce through the gloomy darkness. There were guards that Aslaug had no doubt were the deadly royal guards of the king. Aslaug could see glimpses of the castle from beyond the wall, but it looked ominous and eerie as anything else. This was far from the beautiful castles that faeries often held revels within, and that royalty resided within. This was a darker castle built for the darker deeds of Faerie.

“This way, Master,” Kuria advised.

He led her around the castle where the thorns appeared to be the primary protection and so the actual guards were far less frequent. They seemed to make rounds every ten minutes or so, and though they were more dedicated than humans were in the sense that they didn’t grow bored or falter just because there were hours, days, months, years without threats, that still meant Aslaug and Kuria could find a way to slip through if they could just make it past the thorny wall of protection. Getting to the wall was no problem, but then came the challenge of carefully maneuvering through the thorns.

“Be careful, Master. Thorns such as these will harm even you.”

‘ _ They seem to feed on magical energies and turn them into a weapon. Essentially, they can pierce through any armor or barrier by using your own strength against you. _ ’

“Faeries have some incredible inventions, I’ll give ‘em that,” Aslaug muttered. “Imagine what it must’ve taken them to make such things. I assume it took some sacrificed slaves.”

‘ _ Oh yes. The blood of those who labor away for their king adds to the disgusting enchantments on a place like this. _ ’

“Wonderful.”

Aslaug’s power didn’t help her much in this instance, and so she just had to use her own skill to carefully maneuver through the spikes. There was room for her to slip through, but her cloak had to be removed in the process. Kuria didn’t remove his traveling cloak, but he worked hard to make sure he didn’t get touched and if he did to remove any ripped pieces of fabric that came off. Aslaug got nicked a couple times, and she could tell that the spikes were enchanted based on the unnerving sting left on her skin. She was resistant to most pain thanks to Fáfnir, and that did make her a bit masochistic at times, so she got a bit of a shrill out of the new threat and her maneuvering through the thorny wall.

“How much farther?” Aslaug wondered aloud.

She could barely see the entrance behind her, and without much light, it was hard to see any end in the distance even if it were within sight.

“Not much farther,” Kuria promised. “The thorns become thicker as we near the end, Master. Please be careful.”

“Can we fit through?”

“I have chosen a route that allows the possibility of success. It will take much caution, however.”

“What else is new?”

“Nothing, really, Master.”

“It was sarcasm.”

Aslaug followed Kuria’s lead. There were a couple times she and the djinn had to contort their bodies slowly and carefully, but they finally made it through into a courtyard. Kuria had been vigilant in choosing a place where the guards weren’t going to come for their rounds for another two minutes. Accounting for the time that he knew it would take for them to get through the maze, the percentage chance that they’d be able to make it through at all, and the time limits that they had between rounds from the guards - Kuria had done well.

The two of them now needed to make their way into the actual palace itself, which wasn’t going to be as easy as the outer wall. There were no entrances to the palace that were unguarded, though Kuria  _ did _ know that they needed to go to the lower levels to get to the dungeons and to Finnegan. Finding Fionn would be a whole different task, but Kuria and Aslaug knew that they could do it. They found a temporary hiding spot in the foliage near the thorn wall, careful that nothing could harm them, and they could harm nothing.

“Any magic used can most likely be tracked, warded against, or entirely used against us,” Kuria said. “Faerie magic is more easily disguised, but neither of us have access to any. I’m unsure of djinn magic, but it  _ will _ be detected. My very presence likely lets out a low-level signal, as does yours, Master. So long as we keep our distance and suppress our energies, we should be able to move around freely for a short time. However, the longer we are here and the more we travel around the area, the more a foreign footprint we will leave. We must be swift and hope that we might escape with your comrades, Master.”

“Do you have a plan?”

“We have around a 40% chance of hiding our presence and escaping with your prince and husband. Finding Finnegan is the easiest task. Freeing him, traversing the tower with him, and location Fionn shall be the most dangerous aspect. We must find Fionn no matter the cost, and once we have located both our targets, we must flee. Preferably, we will make a peaceful escape, but should conflict occur, we must be wary of fighting royal fighters of Faerie. The princes of this court are also very formidable.”

“If Fáfnir and I mimic the energies of this place with our radius, we might be able to sneak in and hide ourselves for a little longer so long as we can maintain it.”

Kuria nodded. “I agree. I can help. I’ve always been very good at disguising and transformative magic.”

The two of them went with their plan, and with Aslaug’s range mimicking faerie magic, she had a lot more power when it came to disguise them and traversing the area. They still wanted to avoid others at all costs to make sure they didn’t risk being discovered, but Aslaug was easily able to lift them up to a small window, one that wasn’t meant for an actual person to make it through, but Kuria waved his hand over the window and it shimmered, growing to a modest size and allowing them through.

‘ _ Djinns are masters at deceptive magic, blurring the line between reality and fantasy, life and death - barriers in general are there for them to be surpassed. Kuria’s power is certainly interesting. Being born and raised in the human world should have weakened him significantly, but perhaps his magical levels have adapted to the magic-resistant human world. Should he ever go home, there’s no telling how powerful he might be in comparison to the rest of his kind who have lived in a naturally magic-rich universe _ .’

‘ **_More and more interesting. You have to wonder why the djinn community would abandon Kuria in the first place; perhaps because he was dangerous or perhaps because he did not seem to fit in for some reason. Whatever the reason, he is special without a doubt._ ** ’

Kuria shrunk the small entrance back down again before they got moving and found themselves at a staircase. Down was the way to the dungeons, so down it was. The staircase had no cover whatsoever, so Aslaug was tense and on alert the entire time for anyone coming up or down. Kuria suggested a new technique that might work so long as their magic remained disguised, and after Aslaug gave him permission, he touched her shoulder and she felt his odd magic sweep over her. They began to float into the air before Aslaug’s head began to spin and she suddenly felt like she was upside down. She flipped herself using her radius and found that gravity had flipped so that she and Kuria were standing on the ceiling of the staircase, which was a ramp rather than any steps, which helped her determine which way they were going. Unfortunately, that still meant they needed to climb  _ up _ the ramp to go  _ down _ the stairs, but they were high enough up that none of the guards would notice them so long as they were careful.

By the time they’d made it up (down) to the dungeons, Aslaug’s mind and muscles were getting exhausted from the strain. She’d never had to walk up such a long ramp, and the stairs were in a circular pattern, so she was getting dizzy. Kuria helped her prepare herself before he flipped gravity once again and set them down gently on the floor. Aslaug couldn’t stop her curiosity and also her wonder at Kuria’s power and ability. A djinn’s deceptive powers could blur the lines between reality and imagination, meaning that he could make anything one could imagine real to some kind of extent - such as the common imaginative occurrence of gravity switching to another surface like the wall or the ceiling.

The dungeon was pretty standard and what Aslaug had seen in her dream, and she tried her best to remember the way to Finnegan’s cell. She didn’t dare call out to him, and Kuria seemed to agree. He advised her to pull up the hood of her traveling cloak and hide her identity just in case the other prisoners got any ideas about calling them out. They needed to look like they belonged there to the other prisoners.

“This one,” Kuria announced.

Aslaug stopped at a cell that Kuria had pointed out. Inside was an eerily smooth and simple room, even a comfortable one. It was a simple cube of a room with some kind of foliage and plants made into a bed in the corner. An occupant was hidden on the bed, and Aslaug could see chains leading to the area. It was less a bed of a human but more that of a pet.

Faeries thought of human prisoners as animals, Aslaug recalled. She’d once heard a tale of a faerie - who could speak only the truth - that captured two human men, brothers. The faerie was fond of one brother and left the other to the tortures of faerie prison. When the first brother had heard the screams of the second, the faerie had assured him that it was only the cries of an animal. They thought of humans as lesser beings, they saw them the same way that a human saw a pet. Perhaps they needed to keep them alive and coddled them when they wanted to, but at the same time they would lock them up and show them punishments for disobeying. Faeries valued some aspects of humanity - aspects like their beauty and ephemeral qualities. They valued their resilience and diversity. But they weren’t powerful, and in many cases, faeries valued power over all else.

“You’re sure?” Aslaug asked.

Kuria nodded. “That’s the one you’re looking for.”

Aslaug knew Kuria was keeping things vague just in case of unwanted listeners, but she still felt the urge to confirm if it was Finnegan. Instead, she put her hand to the cell doors and pushed her power forward into unlocking it. There were no wards on the cell, though there were heavy wardings on others. Probably because there was a human in this cell and there was no need for anything more than the chains and the bars blocking off the room. The simple lock clicked, and Aslaug pushed the door in. Kuria followed her inside before he turned and locked the door with his own magic and put up some protections.

“No one can hear us now,” Kuria said.

Aslaug nodded and walked over to the corner of the room where the prisoner laid. She knelt carefully, looking for signs of movement. She heard a light breathing, but it was ever so faint that only her enhanced senses could hear it. There was very little movement, no signs of deep breaths at all. She reached into the bed of foliage, pulling off a blanket of wool and fur.

“Finnegan?”

His orange hair was longer than she’d remembered, far longer than it should have been for the time that she’d been away. It was tangled and messy and covered with dirt, obviously unwashed for a long time. It draped over his face, but she could still see his freckles that dotted every inch of his skin. His skin was very pale - paler than it should have been. He hadn’t seen the sun in a while. Finnegan didn’t tan easily, but he looked white as a ghost. Malnutrition might have served a factor in it as well. Aslaug only pulled back the blanket a bit, but she found that he had been stripped of all his clothes - probably to make sure he couldn’t hide anything on him and because a prisoner didn’t deserve the right to garbs. Faeries weren’t shy about nakedness like some humans were. Without his clothes, Aslaug could see an amalgamation of bruises and cuts on just the parts of him that she had revealed. She could only imagine how it got worse when she could see his entire body.

“Finnegan,” she whispered gently.

She reached out to take his hand, resting by his head, but passed when she felt his skin. It was broken in many places, patches of it new and fresh and recovering from pooled blood of bruises. They’d broken his fingers, she guessed, multiple times. As she ran her hand along his arm, she felt more places where his body had been fractured.

“Why would they do this to you?” she wondered.

Holding Finnegan hostage to get to Fionn was one thing, maybe making him suffer because it would make Fionn do as they said was another. But this had clearly been going on for some time. Had Fionn not given in to the demands of his family and let Finnegan suffer? Even if he was unhappy with it, Aslaug knew he would want to spare Finnegan any pain that he could. Fionn may have been a bit humanized, but he knew how to speak to faeries - he knew how to get them to make oaths that would ensure Fionn got what he’d wanted without any caveats or loopholes. Or had this been going on without Fionn’s knowledge? Or had Fionn be waiting and hoping for Aslaug’s help for longer than Aslaug could fathom? Faerieland had fluctuating time, but never could hundreds of years pass. The longest fluctuation that Aslaug had ever heard about was a single day transferring to 7 years. Years. Aslaug could have let this happen for  _ years _ because she hadn’t rushed herself as much as she could have.

“Can you heal him?” Kuria asked.

Aslaug frowned. “I don’t have a lot of experience in healing others. Myself, yes, but not others.”

“Then please, Master, allow me to help.”

“You know healing magic?”

“I cannot fully fix him, but I can do a little.”

She nodded. Good enough. She wasn’t sure why she put so much trust in Kuria, but it probably came from the fact that Fáfnir knew and trusted him. Fáfnir trusted Kuria and his capabilities, honesty, loyalty, and intelligence, so Aslaug would too. Granted Fáfnir was hardly a trustworthy source when he didn’t pay much attention to his surroundings and didn’t have much caution in the first place.

Kuria stepped forward and held up his hand, which Aslaug now realized was covered in a white glove that was hidden further beneath the long sleeve of his traveling cloak. He looked more like a mage than anything else. When Kuria removed his glove, Aslaug saw unnaturally smooth skin, something she could only equate to Fionn’s un-calloused soft fingers that would never grow callouses no matter what abuse he put them through. His skin was a slightly darker shade than Aslaug’s, a bit tanner, but it was human-like. Aslaug couldn’t imagine that he could be anything so different and hideous that even regular humans wouldn’t find him acceptable.

Kuria carefully reached out, his delicate fingers running over Finnegan’s head and sweeping his curly orange bangs out of the way. Kuria inhaled a deep breath and closed his eyes. Aslaug could feel Kuria’s odd magic building up. Kuria exhaled and his skin darkened to dark grey, near black. His power was concentrated into his hand and as it transferred to Finnegan, an ink stain appeared where Kuria was making contact. Aslaug could sense as Kuria’s power flowed throughout Finnegan’s body and slowly began to heal him.

Kuria was muttering something lightly, but after a moment, Aslaug realized he was singing. Kuria’s voice was beautiful and laced with a lot of magic. It was honestly beautiful and mesmerizing, but slightly terrifying. Aslaug could feel the hum of horrific levels of power. Perhaps the djinns  _ had _ feared Kuria, and that was why they abandoned him. Kuria had clearly proved himself able to hold his own when compared to Aslaug - casting spells and using his senses without breaking a sweat.

Verbal expressions were stronger ways to release magic power, which was why low-level magic-users had to use words to activate their powers, using rhymes or other magical languages to summon their power to the surface. It was those who could use their powers without words that were considered advanced. Even stronger were those who didn’t have to use kinesthetic activation for their powers. Even if someone could use their powers without words, often there had to be some kind of activation and physical aiming of power, such as a snap or waving one’s hands to direct their power towards their target. Once someone could manipulate their powers without kinesthetic activation or aiming, that was when they were truly advanced. Aslaug was working on reaching that level of power, and with her radius expanding, she was able to connect to anything within range to whatever extent she needed.

Once someone had reached even the second level and possibly the third, it meant that the first level - verbal activation - was even more potent than normal, and that was clear with Kuria’s powerful singing. Aslaug felt a heavy weight on her chest, like the air was on the verge of combusting at any moment. But she knew that Kuria’s power wasn’t hostile. If anything, it gave her a sense of hope that he’d be able to help her friend.

Finnegan’s wounds slowly started to recover and finally Kuria relaxed his powers and his hand returned to normal. He slipped on his glove shyly and stepped back to allow Aslaug to examine his work.

“Finnegan?” Aslaug whispered. “ _ Finnegan _ . Hey. Please, wake up. Finnegan!”

She shook his shoulder gently and he slowly stirred. His eyelids trembled with resistance, but finally his mossy green eyes peeked through the cracks.

Aslaug sighed as her entire body relaxed. “You’re okay?”

Finnegan just stared at her blankly. It was almost like he couldn’t see her, like he couldn’t process her presence and his brain just couldn’t comprehend what he saw.

“Finnegan? It’s me. Aslaug. By the gods…” She cupped his face and ran her hand along his skin. It took him a moment to respond, but he closed his eyes and leaned into the touch. “I was so worried about you. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left you alone. Not that I don’t trust you, but…I could’ve prevented all of this if I had just stayed a little longer and protected you…!”

Kuria rested his hand on her shoulder. “Please, Master, don’t judge yourself so harshly. It is likely that the faeries were waiting for a specific moment you departed so that they might accomplish their goals. You cannot coddle your loved ones for eternity, Master. You came in their hour of need; you need not worry yourself over events of the past which you cannot change.”

Aslaug took a deep breath to calm herself. “Right. Let’s just get you out of here, eh, Finn?”

He opened his eyes again and opened his mouth to speak, but his voice seemed to get caught in his throat. His mouth opened and closed as he resembled a hungry fish and Aslaug’s heart clenched.

“Finn? What’s wrong? Why can’t you speak? Kuria, is something wrong? Is there a curse I can’t sense?”

Kuria shook his head. “I sense nothing out of the ordinary, Master. However…” Kuria kneeled beside her and reached out to Finnegan’s temple. “He appears to have gone through great trauma that steals away his voice.”

“Torture?”

Kuria nodded. “Would you like to see?”

Aslaug hesitated for a moment, but she nodded. “I need to know if I want to help him.”

Kuria nodded and removed both of his gloves. He reached out and took Finnegan’s hand before offering his other hand for Aslaug to take. She grasped his hand with a tight grip and nodded for him to continue. He closed his eyes and his power flared up again, and this time, Aslaug let it flow through her. Kuria’s hands darkened to black and left an inky blotch on both Finnegan’s and Aslaug’s hands - a tingly patch of his power that summoned a vision to her eyes.

‘ _ Finnegan wondered how long he had been there. He wondered if he’d ever be able to truly feel pain again, because at the moment all he knew was a numbing stillness. _

_ “His will is strong. It was very interesting to break someone so resilient.” _

_ “Remember to keep him alive. Just enough so that he will die in front of his love. I enjoy the prospect of his horror when his hope is crushed before his eyes. Our foolish brother must be taught a lesson.” _

_ Finnegan barely registered what was happening around him, but at the prospect of seeing Fionn, a ball of emotion pooled in his stomach and he twitched without meaning to. _

_ “Ah, it seems he still responds to the mention of his lover. You have more work to do.” _

_ Finnegan endured the pain same as he had before, but this time he was more prepared. He knew how he needed to react and how he was expected to. He would wait for Fionn. Fionn would come for him, and one way or another they’d see each other again. Even if it was for the last time. _ ’

Aslaug gasped as her vision and feelings returned to her again. Kuria had released her hand and the inky black blotch of his power was fading away very quickly. Aslaug reached her hand up to feel her beating heart pumping rapidly. Waves of horror and tortures flowed through her body and shook her to the core. Countless days, endless thoughts, a never-ending nightmare.

“All that?”

Kuria nodded. He had transferred over memories and feelings themselves that Finnegan had experienced over the course of his stay. There was so much grief and despair and hope that was crushed day by day. He had been helpless to stop his suffering, and he knew that no matter how much he suffered, he was making Fionn suffer too.

“We need to find Fionn and get them home. It’ll take time, but we can help him recover.”

Kuria nodded. “According to his memories, Fionn is brought to see Finnegan’s torture on a regular basis.”

“Someone will come for Finnegan and bring him to Fionn.”

“They are brought to another room in the prison. Fionn himself needs to be restrained as well during the process.”

“So…what? We just wait it out until they’re brought to us? Finn can’t take much more. Just seeing his captors will hurt his psychological state. He barely believes that we’re actually here to rescue him.”

“They used hallucinogens on him to trick him into seeing what they wanted of him. Restoring his mind will be beneficial to our cause, but it will take more time then we have.”

“Can you fix his mind temporarily?”

“Perhaps, Master. If you command it, I will see what I can do.”

“Do it. Fix his mental state to a stable condition until we get to safety and when we have the time to help him recover properly. And try not to make the change too painful and abrupt during the transfer both in an out of your influence.”

Kuria nodded. He held up his hands again and they blacken with his magic taking hold. He began singing his light tune again, his voice a light ominous yet comforting melody that chilled Aslaug to the bones. Finn’s eyes widened in surprise and his pupils dilated, but he didn’t appear to be in pain. It took a few minutes, but finally, Kuria pulled his hands away.

“Done. I’ve restored him for a while, though I’m not sure how long it’ll last.”

“Until we get to safety, let’s hope.”

Finn’s eyes slowly came into focus and he blinked, slowly regaining his senses. “Aslaug?”

“Finnegan. How do you fare?”

He squeezed his eyes shut and winced, raising his hand to his head. “Crappy.”

“Do you know what’s happening?”

“I got kidnapped by faeries in the night, what else? I’ve been here for a while, too long, really. And it’s been hell.”

“Well it’s time to get you and Fionn out of here. First things first though, we have to find him.”

“They brought me to him once per day. I don’t think my trip for today has happened. They’ll be coming for me.”

“Master,” Kuria spoke up. “I believe our best chance at finding Lord Fionn is to go to this meeting.”

“Meaning we’re going to have to turn ourselves in and then bust our way out,” Aslaug concluded.

“Depending on how things happen,” Finnegan corrected, “we might not need to bust out loudly. They take us to a secluded room. For some reason, the king wanted to make sure that as few people as possible knew about Fionn’s return and my capture.”

“He must need something more drastic from Fionn than simple cooperation if he went to the lengths that he did to torture and keep your presence a secret to avoid any traitors finding out about you. He needs something from Fionn that begets the suffering of his love for so long a period of time, for as long as it takes.”

“They broke his mind so badly that it’s unlikely that escape will result in anything we might consider victory,” Kuria said. “Perhaps that was their intention.”

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Finnegan asked. “I don’t believe we’ve been introduced.”

“This is Kuria,” Aslaug introduced. “A servant of Fáfnir, a djinn. Very nice oddball, loyal, powerful. You can refer to him with male pronouns.”

“A djinn, huh?” Finnegan’s mossy gaze locked onto Kuria critically. Kuria, despite being mostly hidden, shrunk back in embarrassment.

“Fáfnir trusts him to not be a threat, and so far, he has proven a useful and loyal ally,” Aslaug said. “For now, he is a useful asset in my mission to find you both.”

Finnegan smiled. “Well I’m just glad that you’re not doing it all alone. I know how you get when you start brooding all alone with Fáfnir in your head. You’re always so pensive, and when you blame yourself for something there’s no getting you out of your head. Having so company is good for you.”

“I suppose so. I was…really worried that this was all my fault. When someone tells you that something was beyond your control, it doesn’t change the past, so I never like it when people say stuff like that - I never understood why people said such empty things. But…it’s nice to have a pick-me-up at times. A bubbly personality was needed during this excursion.”

Finnegan nodded. “So, if we’re going to get out of here, we’re going to need to do some acting. I have a plan, but you both need to follow my lead and know how to improvise well enough to handle yourselves under the scrutiny of faeries. And trust me, they’re not easy to fool.”

“I’ve acted all my life, Finnegan,” Aslaug said. “You know the faeries better than I do that this point, so I’ll follow your lead. Kuria has this enchantment where whatever I order him to do, he will be able to accomplish his goals by any means necessary - he will be given the tools he needs to do what must be done. It’s helpful when you can’t predict what will happen. If I order him to act properly, he won’t fail us.”

Kuria nodded. “Yes, Master. Lord Finnegan, please give the commands.”

“Just call me Finn or Finnegan, all right? I’m no lord.”

“But you are Master’s equal, and I am beneath Master, so I am beneath you.”

“What if you just use Japanese honorifics?” Aslaug suggested. “You’re Japanese, right?”

“Yes Master.”

“Then just choose an honorific for anyone other than me so that it’s less weird to us, if you would. Of course, Fáfnir won’t have anything other than ‘Master,’ but feel free to refer to me as Aslaug when you wish to differentiate between me and the dragon.”

Kuria nodded. “Okay Master.”

“Right, now Kuria had a point. What’s the plan, Finn?”


	7. Fionn's Family and Kuria's Other

After Finnegan went through a long process of detailing what must happen and all the things that he could possibly list that could go wrong (Aslaug had to cut him off at one point, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still muttering his worries in the background), they began their plan.

First step was to wait for when Finnegan’s handlers would bring him to where they needed to go. Kuria would drop his barrier and then everything would begin - they’d be able to be detected, physically and magically, and so there was no secretive communication. The only ones who could communicate without fear of being overheard were Aslaug and Fáfnir because technically they were of one mind. They needed to hope that they could follow a plan and improvise if necessary to make their way over to Fionn. The goal was to trick the guards into letting them all into one room at the same time - preferably one that was cut off from the rest of the palace thanks to the secretive nature of Finnegan and Fionn’s situation. After that, escaping quietly or having to make a noisy dash for the exit, bashing their way through guards and even Fionn’s brothers…well, that all depended on what situation they were in by the time everyone was together.

“I may have to give you commands during the process,” Aslaug warned Kuria. “Interpret the real commands as you see fit, but just remember that everything within this scenario must be forged to tell the right story.”

“I understand, Master,” Kuria said firmly. “I will not fail you.”

“We’ll have to hope that your order for success overrides Kuria’s natural inability to make decisions on his own,” Finnegan said. “Then again, I’ve seen weirder. Interpreting whether or not to truly go along with your orders, Aslaug, could mean the difference between a quiet and a loud escape.”

“I know. But Fáfnir trusts Kuria and therefore so do I. A djinn’s power to get things done is useful when used correctly, and I believe that the right things are in place. He hasn’t failed me so far.”

“Get ready,” Finnegan warned. “They’ll be coming around right about now.”

“Ready as ever,” Aslaug agreed. “Kuria?”

“Yes Master!” he jumped.

Kuria released his barrier and their show began.

“I’m sorry, Master! I could not hold it any longer!”

“We’re exposed!” Aslaug shouted. “Get us out of here! Now!”

Kuria made a show of kicking open the cell door. Aslaug had given Finnegan her traveling cloak to cover himself, but he still had no shoes, which could leave him vulnerable to any number of dangerous plants that could pierce him and get into his bloodstream. Getting past the thorns around the palace would be a big problem because they’d have to slow down one way or another, but the thorns were even more deadly to faeries because they had the nauseating effect of wrought iron and other weaknesses of faeries in place. It didn’t mean they couldn’t power past the thorn’s effects, and Fionn would most likely be affected as well, but there was nothing else that any of them could think of.

They began to run slowly, hearing screaming and pursuers behind them. Aslaug had to mentally prepare both herself and Fáfnir for the act of purposefully getting caught and losing without killing or fighting back. Kuria knew that he had to hold back as well, and determining the right amount of resistance versus complacency would be his biggest problem - hopefully not a problem if Aslaug’s orders were accurate enough to influence his magical commands.

Aslaug was almost worried that they’d get away too easily. She accidentally punched a faerie that tried to stop them, but she hit him far too hard and knocked him out. She ordered Fáfnir to dial back the strength until they found Fionn, and surprisingly, the dragon agreed. She had suspected that he liked Fionn in secret, and though the dragon would never admit it, he did have some semblance of love with Aslaug and her companions.

Tripping and falling. A rookie mistake, but one that made the most sense in the context of Finnegan’s current state. He aimed directly for Kuria who had specifically lined up with Aslaug and the three tumbled to the floor. Aslaug and Kuria were quick to rise and face their pursuers, but both of them knew they needed to make this quick. At the same time, they couldn’t lose too easily.

Kuria knew how to punch. His moves were instinctive but coordinated. Aslaug noticed that he had good form and was hyper aware of his surroundings. The number of attackers were nothing compared to what Kuria could handle, that much was obvious. Aslaug took one side of the hall and Kuria took the other with Finnegan in the middle between them. They had to balance their confidence in their escape - they didn’t want to be underestimated or overestimated.

Aslaug could see how Kuria was leaving openings on purpose, keeping a consistent level of fighting that seemed very natural but was very deliberate. Aslaug had studied levels of fighters before and made it a natural instinct to assess techniques and potential skill level, and Kuria was specifically making his fighting nuanced to the point that Aslaug - a trained fighter and observer - would have been fooled if she didn’t know any better. Aslaug had to focus on keeping her fighting technique basic, but she felt slightly jealous of the fact that Kuria’s djinn enchantments would automatically allow him perfection based on the situation. She didn’t like being jealous of someone else - _Fáfnir_ didn’t like being jealous of someone else.

Aslaug was thrown back by a surprising move that genuinely took her by surprise. A gust of wind shoved her back hard enough to knock her off her feet and disoriented her to the point that she temporarily lost track of her orientation. When she hit the ground, she realized she’d flipped so that she landed head-first. She pushed her neck and flexed her back so that she twisted her momentum and landed on her feet again. She’d always wanted to learn elemental magic, but she’d hadn’t yet found anyone to teach her properly. Some kind of wind expert had been there, she didn’t care who, and she knew that he might genuinely be a problem.

“Master!”

Aslaug was strong when it came to her radius, but beyond that her magic wasn’t concentrated into any specific category; she could sense, block, and manipulate basic energies themselves, but specific and directed magic would be more of a problem. Kuria, as a djinn, would be more equipped to fight elementals.

“Kuria, handle him!”

Kuria jumped into action and launched in front of Aslaug while she turned to take his place against the other hall. She refrained from using her radius to make things too easy, and actually the challenge was invigorating. She got stabbed by weapons once punching and kicking was determined to be ineffective against her, but the pain only pumped her up even more. Behind her, Kuria took up a defensive pose and redirected some wind magic with fluid grace and ease. So Aslaug had been right about Kuria’s elemental knowledge as well. Aslaug didn’t get a good look, but she knew that Kuria was handling the situation.

Aslaug decided that getting stabbed clean through the shoulder with a spear was a good breaking point. In all honesty, the weapon actually _did_ harm her greatly, as it was heavily infused with magics that activated once she was pierced. Vines grew from the spear’s point and exploded outwards like an octopus, wriggling, growing, and waving around. The weight alone pulled Aslaug off balance, but the living vines were using the wound from the spear against her and slipping into her blood stream, growing into the rest of her body. They didn’t completely overtake her body, but she had a feeling that was deliberate. There would be no extracting the creature by normal means, and the vines would be able to grow at a rapid rate and instantly kill her at any moment. She felt poison entering her system rapidly, alongside the pain and destruction of the vines themselves. The point was to hold her hostage.

“Master!”

“Take another step and your master will suffer a tragic demise.”

Kuria froze in his tracks and he was hit with a blast of wind from behind that dispersed and split into half a dozen different gatherings. The wind manifested into physical rings, which Aslaug recognized as a genuine wind technique. There were powerful wind-users who could manipulate wind to do physical work, from just shoving things to actually forming the shapes of physical objects to slicing clean through solids as dense as steel. It was an advanced and difficult skill reserved only for even the most skilled of wind-users. Wind slices could be precise enough to slice through brittle rocks without causing crumbling, a clean line through. Only a wind-user could dictate the cutting ability of the wind they controlled, meaning that though Kuria was only being restrained by rings of wind, they could instantly be turned into sharp rings that could cut him clean through in an instant. Even if Kuria could fight wind magic, a resisting willpower would impede him, and Aslaug was also on the line to finish the deal.

“Looks like they really brought out the big guns,” Aslaug muttered.

She was impressed, and also excited. She so rarely had a chance to fight something so advanced that she needed to be smart about her strategy. Faerie was so dark, dangerous, and chaotic, even compared to the human world where there were _already_ a bunch of monsters roaming around. If Aslaug ever wanted to get stronger and push her limits, training and learning from creatures in Faerie was her best bet.

She made a mental note just before the wind-user pulled all the air out of her lungs and rapidly deprived her of oxygen. She blacked out.

When Aslaug woke up, she was reminded of her predicament. She’d nearly forgotten because when she woke up, she felt no pain whatsoever. When she tried to move, she felt a numb stiffness and she realized that it was the feeling of vines constraining her from the inside out with poison coursing through her system and paralyzing her. It was exhilarating. She wondered if she still had access to her powers.

‘ **_Fáfnir?_ **’

‘ _Yup, still here. They tried to suppress your power while you were unconscious, and I think they believe they’ve succeeded. Unfortunately, so long as the two of us are intertwined, I can still wield your power even if it is being purposefully inhibited. Meaning that you can tap into my resources as well._ ’

‘ **_Essentially, so long as the two of us exist together, we’re unstoppable. Oh, you must love that._ **’

‘ _I do find pleasure in the idea, yes. You and I must be of one mind to be at our strongest, however. Which we often are not._ ’

‘ **_Oh come now, we get along just fine._ **’

‘ _When you’re constantly suppressing me and doing most of the work yourself? That’s not cooperation, that’s tyranny._ ’

‘ **_That’s a matter of opinion._ **’

‘ _Do you want me to help you or not?_ ’

‘ **_Well if you don’t, we’ll be stuck here under the watchful eye of faeries probably for the rest of eternity._ **’

‘ _Uh-uh._ You _got us into this mess and I’m not spending eternity stuck in captivity because of your human heart getting the best of us._ ’

‘ **_It’s just a gentle reminder of what happens if you don’t cooperate._ **’

‘ _Let_ me _just give you a gentle reminder that this is all your fault and you’re the one who got us into this predicament in the first place._ ’

‘ **_Yeah, yeah, but I wouldn’t have done this if I didn’t genuinely believe in our ability._ **’

‘ _Glad to know you take me for granted._ ’

‘ **_Not for_ ** **granted** **_. I just utilize all the tools at my disposal and comprehend the levels of challenge that I can handle._ **’

‘ _Whatever you want to call it._ ’

“Master!” Kuria called.

She looked up and saw Kuria bound by enchanted restraints. Aslaug wasn’t sure if he could escape the bonds and if the faeries knew the true length of his power, but Aslaug just had to hope that her previous command that prevented him from failure would still be in play. There was no telling. If so, Aslaug would need to find a way to free him before they could continue. But once Kuria was free, a simple command would make it so that nothing could stop him.

“Finally, you wake.”

Aslaug tried to move, but she could barely twitch her body. Her eyes were free to roam, but she’d need a little more effort to move the rest of her body. It took a lot of concentration, but she _could_ move herself if she gave the commands, she just couldn’t feel when and if her body responded.

“Sorry to disappoint,” Aslaug said, though the act of speaking itself was exhausting.

“Resilience of the highest nature does a being such as you possess.”

Aslaug had to look out of the corner of her eye to see a faerie that definitely wasn’t Fionn standing in the room, probably looking down on her. Aslaug expanded her radius and saw that there were at least a dozen other faeries, most of them guards at the edges of the room, but the minority were lording over Aslaug and her friends. She could see Kuria with her own eyes, but Finnegan was just out of her sight as well and her main target - Fionn - was there. He was bound to a chair by vines similar to those that were constraining Aslaug, although his appeared to be more painful because they were littered with thorns.

“What do you want with us?” Aslaug asked.

“I see no reason to indulge the curiosity of intruders.”

“You stole my husband from me and Fionn is one of my most trusted companions, so yes, I believe I am entitled to a reason behind why you interfered with my life. I would enjoy busting down the metaphorical doors and break out my friends, but I was trying to be a little nicer than usual and look where it got me.”

“You would consider the traitor a companion?”

“I’d just _love_ to know why he’s called a traitor. We never talk, you see. Everything’s a big mystery with you fey. But then, he comes to my home seeking refuge and how can I resist? But oh, now my husband has been dragged into something and now I’ve got to get him back. How coincidental that it just happens to be the day I travel far away that you choose to strike. How long were you waiting for an opportunity to escape my wrath? Because guess what? I’m here, and I’m not happy, and if you want to keep living for a few more minutes, I suggest you start talking.”

“Foolish child. You have no power-”

“Do not underestimate a dragon,” another voice cut in. “Even restrained she still poses a great threat.”

“If you’re so inclined to know, dràgon, then allow me to clarify,” a larger voice said. They appeared to be a higher power than the first two voices, though Aslaug couldn’t tell if he was in charge around there. “We hold no ill will towards you personally, but your husband has interfered with affairs of the court on the highest degree. In harboring the traitorous prince, he has violated our terms of peace.”

“Traitorous prince?” Kuria repeated.

“So basically, once he got involved there was no sparing him; he lost his innocence the moment he and Fionn became acquainted,” Aslaug summarized. “But that still doesn’t explain why Fionn came to my home in the first place.”

“The one you call ‘Fionn’ is a prince of this court.”

“Yeah, I got that already.”

“Born under the king’s watchful eye, a purpose was bequeathed upon the conception of his very birth. While he denies his fate, he shall suffer accordingly.”

“What destiny are you talking about? Something that would spurn even his kind heart must be that of atrocious proportions.”

“He would doom our lands out of a misplaced sense of pride.”

“I will not bless a man who killed my mother and exiled my brother!” Fionn spat. “As a child, my mother was my only source of peace and tranquility. Seeing this incited my father to demand her murder. My younger brother bound by blood of both mother _and_ father was left to the wilds in servitude as his popularity within the court grew to unfavorable proportions. The man I am cursed to call father has been determined to leave in ruin all I hold dear under the guise of strengthening my resolve. But his actions have done naught but beget my eternal ire.”

“Should the prince fail to enact his duties, the whole of Faerie shall suffer.”

“Then let it suffer as I have!”

“Foolish child! A foul bastard such as you would not live without our father’s order!”

“If I live only to suffer then so too shall he, for the burden falls upon his shoulders to govern and protect his people, and in failing me he has failed all the rest!”

The two began spitting harsh words in the faerie language while Aslaug could feel the other residents shuffling nervously. Fionn must have purposefully been agitating his brother both out of personal anger and to provide a distraction, as most of the other guards didn’t dare interfere when the princes started to argue. When Aslaug felt a hum in the air, she tensed with dread just before Finnegan cried out in pain.

Fionn held his ground firmly, but his shouting came to a halt. While he refused to show concern, he also refused to say anything to stop Finnegan’s torture. When his brother had the upper hand, Fionn began to tense and instinctively tried to break his bindings. He dug the thorns further into himself, perhaps as punishment for letting this happen, but it only seemed to spur his brother on further. Fionn was trapped in a position between submitting and resisting, and it only prolonged Finnegan’s torture. He could hold completely still and not show a hint of emotion, Aslaug knew it was possible. His struggles were purposeful, he was giving his enemies what they wanted: a hint of weakness.

‘ **_Why would he struggle? Why incur worse punishment upon his love?_ **’

‘ _Simple, Aslaug. So wise as you are, you cannot see it? The fey find pleasure in torture. Were Fionn to resist, hold firm and show little to no reaction - which he is fully capable of doing - they would lose their need for Finnegan. While Fionn refuses to give in to their demands, he must also show submission. However, his hope has arisen with your arrival. He believes you have a plan; he must hope that you do, else this scenario will be truly tragic._ ’

‘ **_We shall not fail. Right?_ **’

For once, Fáfnir didn’t give some snarky remark or even use sarcasm. ‘ _Right._ ’

Aslaug could see Kuria wriggling subtly and with a small flick of his finger he broke one of his enchanted bonds. Kuria gave a small smile, one that didn’t quite seem like him, but Aslaug couldn’t really tell from her position and from her cloudy state of mind. Once he’d found the frequency that his bonds held him at, he could destroy them all with the flick of a finger. All he needed was the cue and he could bust out.

‘ **_Fáfnir?_ **’

‘ _By your command, Aslaug, but what do we do once we’re all free? Is the loud escape our plan?_ ’

‘ **_I suppose it has to be._ **’

‘ _We could always wait it out for another opportunity._ ’

‘ **_The fey court isn’t going to let us go one way or another. We’ll be hunted. At least this way we don’t have to hold back._ **’

‘ _And neither do they. Look, I have some questions to ask Fionn, and I’d prefer to do it quietly before we make any hasty decisions._ ’

‘ **_Why? Does it concern this weird deal that they have going on that Fionn refuses to go through with?_ **’

‘ _Yes._ ’

‘ **_You want him to make the bargain?_ **’

‘ _Yes. Look, I’m not entirely sure, but I think I know what the deal is that they planned to make, but I need confirmation from Fionn. If this is truly what I think it is, Fionn’s stubbornness may not be for the best._ ’

‘ **_It’s that serious, eh? Usually you’re all for resisting authority._ **’

‘ _Look, I may just be a dragon, but I’ve gotten around. There are things in this world that I know not to mess with, things bigger than just possessions or power. This is the nature of the world, and personally I’d like to keep it the way that it is if I can. For now, at least._ ’

‘ **_All right then. We’ll improvise._ **’

“Hey, faerie dude!” Aslaug shouted. “Let me speak to him. Let me speak to Fionn alone and I’ll see what I can do about this deal. I make no promises, but I have a better chance than you do. Fionn’s stubborn. The harder you push him, the more he’ll resist. So let me make a deal with him. Only conditions are that all other faeries leave us alone.”

“You will have him submit?”

“Once we get this whole faerie deal out of the way, Fionn comes back with me, along with Finnegan and my servant. We get out of your lives; you stay out of ours. If I can’t make a deal with him, then we can do it the hard way like you planned, but I’m fairly confident that things will work out. We’re friends, aren’t we Fionn?”

Aslaug could feel Fionn’s tenseness in the air with her radius. He wasn’t sure about her plan. Neither was Finnegan or Kuria, honestly. Kuria in front of her looked baffled. He had been expecting a brawl.

“We accept your challenge. You have ten minutes.”

“Oh, and here I thought you were going to be unfair about it all.”

By the time the faeries departed, Aslaug exhaled and expanded her radius to take up the entire room.

“Your vectors have encompassed us,” Fionn said.

“Blocking sound and eavesdropping capabilities,” Kuria agreed. “Very good, Master. Master is strong even when disabled.”

Aslaug used her power to pull herself up to be vertical. She still couldn’t move her physical body, but she could manipulate it with her…what had Fionn called it? “Vectors? Nice name. I might use that.”

“It is a scientific name for a two-dimensional direction of influence,” Kuria provided.

“Used primarily in the charting of vessels at sea,” Fionn agreed. “Very good. What are you, creature?”

“A djinn,” Aslaug explained. “Origins are unknown, but he was exiled to the human world and raised by a human man before he was left alone. He came into the servitude of Fáfnir and here we are.”

“Can we get to the point?” Finnegan interjected.

“Right, yes. What is this about a bargain?” Fionn asked.

“Please tell me that was just an excuse to get us some alone time.”

“While lying to faeries is entirely possible, it’s not recommended,” Aslaug said. “They’re pretty good at sensing lies from just tone and body composure. I really do have something to ask you about this whole deal that the faeries and your dad want with you, Fionn. What does this blessing or whatever entail and why does it risk the whole of Faerie?”

Fionn sighed. “When I was an infant, a newborn, my father desired my immediate demise. However, I displayed a blessing of sort that bid him to spare my life. I have been raised since then to bestow this blessing upon my father and his lands when I grow to maturity. However, it appeared that I was unsatisfactory, and I had long since passed my coming of age.”

“So he killed your mother?”

“He hoped to incite my abilities through great trauma and tragedy; he believed that perhaps her kindness weakened my resolve and bid me to suppress my power unconsciously. It is well-known that great bouts of anger and sadness will result in a breaking of one’s limits. So he made me chose between my mother and my infant brother. My mother requested of me that I choose to take her life over her youngest child’s.”

“You did the deed yourself, huh?” Kuria asked.

There was a crookedness to his smile that made Aslaug slightly unsettled. Kuria was a ball of fluff, sunshine personified, and even when fighting the djinn was calm, composed, and very rarely as serious as Aslaug could get. Now there seemed to be more malice in his body and tone, like a whole new person was peeking through.

“I thought I smelled something on you before. Kin-slayer. A permanent curse on your person, a stain, a smell that can be identified by even the lowest of magical creatures.”

“From one kin-slayer to the next, you have little right to judge. I didn’t smell it on you at first, but perhaps that was simply because you were not showing your true colors.”

Kuria laughed. “I’d nearly forgotten. What a treat. It seems that your similarities to mine brought out a whole new me, a me that I’d tried to hide. Just like you. Hiding from who you really are and what you’ve done and how you’ll never be accepted.”

“All right, what the heck is happening?” Finnegan asked. “Is there some supernatural thing that I’m not getting?”

‘ _It seems that Kuria’s hidden origins are starting to become clearer,_ ’ Fáfnir said.

“Some kind of suppressed personality, I presume?” Aslaug guessed. She sighed. “Why are all the good ones like this?”

“Nevermind me for a moment,” Kuria said. “This blessing of yours, Fionn, how strongly you deny it, and yet even I can tell you that it’s not a good idea to curse your entire land. You see, a very strong deity was born into Fionn’s person, but unlike with Lord Fáfnir, the being within Fionn was born assimilated into his person. This deity was killed in a war long ago, but being as important as he is, there’s no _true_ way to kill him. Unfortunately, he did still die, and the blessings that he had on his land began to fade with his passing. When he was reborn, he needed to renew the blessings on this land, or it would die. The king saw it as an opportunity to have you born as his son, but your powers refused to develop because you refused to be your true self, and so here we are.”

“What does this blessing entail?” Aslaug asked. “Why is it so important?”

“He has the gift of the fire of life, rebirth, and heat itself. The king’s lands are growing cooler, fire becomes harder to burn, the lands and people alike are becoming infertile. This blessing had been in place for countless centuries, and as this occurrence is so rare, there is little information on how to counter it.”

“I don’t know how to give this blessing even should I agree to do my father’s bidding,” Fionn admitted. “Beyond the fact that my father would be praised for saving his lands at the cost of my pride, my refusal is born from the simple notion that I have no way of doing what is asked of me.”

“I can tell you,” Kuria said. “I can teach you.”

“Why? How?”

“I am a djinn. I am a _powerful_ djinn. I know things.”

“You are not Kuria, not the one I know,” Aslaug said.

“You and Fáfnir know very little about who I am. You always have. Even _I_ know very little about who I am. Kuria is the name that the human man gave me. But I am not him, not entirely, it’s true. So what would you call me?”

Aslaug saw the djinn change. His skin darkened to the state that it took when Kuria was summoning his magic, but rather than just his fingers or hands, the effect spread across his entire body. Even his pure traveling cloak darkened to black and grey. The illusion hiding him faded away, and Aslaug finally looked upon his eyes - noticing for the first time that they were a soft pink that complimented the rest of his pale complexion - to watch as they darkened and bled to blood red in nature while his pupils slit like a feline’s. His white hair contrasted heavily with his new appearance and yet it still looked reasonable. The hair lengthened and draped down even longer than Aslaug’s (she would _not_ be jealous of the long, full, healthy head of hair he had compared to her barely maintained thin weave) while his ears were long and pointed similar to Fionn’s. A blue jewel in the shape of an upside-down V appeared on his forehead, a purple line swept under his right eye like a cut, and a purple triangle sat under his left eye pointing downwards almost like a teardrop.

“I have no name, no sex, no comrades, I am just alone, and I am just myself. That is Kuria. But I am not Kuria. It appears the three of you have managed to awaken me when your power combines. I know who I am, but even so, I ask you. What will you call me?”

Aslaug couldn’t help but stare for a moment. Why were all otherworldly creatures so perfect and then there was just her? Well, if they were looking for a name…

“How about Kráka? That’s my other name, but I don’t use it very often. It means ‘Crow,’ and you’re black as a crow.”

The djinn hummed. “Fine, that will do.”

“So, um…Kráka,” Finnegan cleared his throat. “What does teaching Fionn the power to give his blessing or whatever do?”

“Oh, not much beyond saving most of the mystical realm in this reality. Faerieland, you see, is essentially the source of most magic in this dimension. Djinns exist in another universe and scarcely traverse this land because it is devoid of the magical properties. However, faeries are the result of a wellspring of magic born out of unnatural causes that merged with the land in question and produced the kingdoms that we have today. The magic from Faerie bleeds into the rest of the world, it has merged with nature and firmly established itself here. But whatever god allowed Faerie to exist in the first place had to give their aid and blessing to plant the seeds that would eventually bloom into the land known as Faerie today. Now, the blessing needs to be renewed or the natural magic that grows here will be snuffed out by this neutral land.

“I know not who I am nor why I was exiled, but I am still a djinn, and I still retain a great deal of wisdom when it comes to true magic. I can teach Fionn in the ways of his power, but he must allow me to do so and accept his true nature. The destruction of even half of Faerie will not be healthy for this world that has become so wealthy in its incorporated enchantments. All species who rely on magic to survive in some fashion will be eradicated or at the very least shall slowly die out, and that is more than three quarters of the beings that currently reside in this land. Will you truly be so selfish that you would cause the end of so many countless innocents? Of course, you would be sparing the human population and the regular non-magical beings from the horrors that the supernatural world can cause. The choice is yours.”

“I am no sadist who craves the pain of others,” Fionn declared. “But my father I will not allow the boon of leadership when he has not yet paid for his crimes nor my compassion.”

Kráka smiled. “I think I can find a way around that. Master, your orders still bind me even in this form. I will ask you now if we can refine our strategy. Escape may not be necessary for us to get what we want. We may yet be able to free the four of us, save Faerieland, and prevent the king from escaping without his dues. But you will need to order me to succeed these tasks to override the order for escape.”

“Fine by me. Let’s see what you got.”

“ _Aslaug_ ,” Finnegan warned. “You trust this djinn so much?”

She nodded. “And I believe that this is to our benefit. If we escape by force, the faerie realm will never leave us alone and the consequences that Kráka mentioned _will_ occur. This is a win-win-win situation. Besides, things are just getting fun.”

“Then let us call the faeries to return and close this deal,” Kráka declared.


	8. Training

Kráka’s deal was simple. The four of them would be freed and allowed to wander a certain quarantined area of Faerie so that they all might teach Fionn how to use his power. Kráka could only guess how long it would take, but because they knew that the faeries would want an exact date, Kráka simply guessed a pair of fortnights, making it very clear that it was a guess and they could finish sooner or later. They would not be freed until they had accomplished their goal. Breaking free by force would result in being hunted and returned no matter how long it took. If Faerie was to fall before Fionn could master his power, that burden was to weigh on his shoulders. The faeries had nothing much to bargain, Kráka pointed out, and their group was showing a mercy by being willing to help and get Fionn to comply in the first place.

Since Fionn’s terms made it so that his father wouldn’t get away with everything he’d done, Kráka decided that he needed to come up with something satisfactory. They didn’t want the king dead or anything, at least not yet, but there was something just as cruel that, as a djinn, Kráka found appropriate.

“Three favors,” Kráka announced proudly. “Any time, any conditions, he will have to repay his debt with three favors that we can cash in at any time. We’ll have to be careful with how we set the terms of our desires when we claim them, but three favors of the king are valuable. He cannot kill us, but he can try his damned hardest to make us use those three favors for trivial means. But I don’t think we have to worry about that. The only way he could threaten us is to find a power that would make us bow down, and we all know that he doesn’t have anything that could stand up to the three of us.”

“Hi, I’m also here too,” Finnegan said.

“Yes you are, little button.” Kráka bopped him on the nose to Finnegan’s confusion. “For now, we will have to get to Fionn’s training.”

“What training do you suggest?” Fionn asked.

Kráka’s otherworldly air remained around him, but his bubbly personality - not as bubbly as Kuria’s, but sadistically malicious - darkened. “Training that requires your whole being, Fionn. You have failed to accept who you are for a very long time, and that is why this training shall be particularly difficult for you under your current circumstances.”

Fionn and Kráka often disappeared into the woods during their training. Sometimes there were the loud chaotic sounds of a fight, while other times it was silent without even the animals making sounds or the woods whispering their subtle tunes. Aslaug and Fionn were both trained in combat and magic by Kráka, but Fionn’s training took precedence over Aslaug’s and she was mostly there just to learn what she could.

Finnegan felt slightly left out most of the time, but Aslaug kept him amused when Kráka and Fionn were off doing their secret training.

“I’m worried about him,” Finnegan admitted. “This is all crazy. I think my brain’s gonna explode.”

“Getting involved with a faerie _always_ complicates things,” Aslaug said. “Especially a prince. The point is that you love him enough to support him through this. He wants to punish his father and the people who hurt you, but right now he needs to think about the big picture and the people that are his responsibility to protect and aid. The question is, do you love him?”

“More than life itself,” Finnegan admitted. “But…I just want this to be over. I want to go home and have him safe and without this burden on his shoulders. Every moment that we’re in Faerie, I feel on edge, in a constant state of unrest. I miss our lazy days in the mansion, running around and hiding our relationship, just holding each other or maybe even more. Days where he wasn’t a prince, he wasn’t even a faerie, and I wasn’t a human. We were just…us.”

Aslaug smiled. “The love you have is something I’m jealous of. It’s not often you find so pure a connection.”

“Do you trust this Kráka?”

She shrugged. “Less than I trust Kuria, but I believe that they’re worth keeping around. You might like them. I think they’re warming up to _you_.”

“Where’d you get _that_ impression?”

“Kráka can’t maintain their form forever. In the end, Kuria is the default entity when in this realm just like I’m the default entity with Fáfnir inside me. Maintaining Kráka’s form is easier in Faerie than it is in the human world, but they still get exhausted. Kráka confesses things to me in the night when you all are resting. Not all the time, but just enough for me to know some things here and there. Kráka hates humans, their own kind, and at times they hate themself. They hate not knowing the truth about who they are. But they don’t hate you, and they don’t hate Fionn, and they don’t hate me. I think they like us, and for our sake, they’re even willing to accept being Kuria most of the time.”

Finnegan sighed. “I could stand to get to know them better. I guess. Or him. Whatever.”

“I like to think that Kuria is fine with male pronouns but Kráka is more neutral.”

“How does that work, anyway? If he’s a djinn, does that mean he…? Or they…?” Finnegan gestured erratically before crossing his legs and pulling them up to hug his knees. “Nevermind.”

“Djinns have both sex organs depending on how they’re feeling, if you were curious,” Aslaug said with a smirk. “It’s less a matter of sex and more a matter of an ideal partner or partners for them.”

Finnegan cleared his throat. “Anyway, we never got the chance to discuss your trip, the one you left on before we were taken. How’d the search go for knowledge on your parents?”

Aslaug waved dismissively. “Oh, it wasn’t much. I met my half-sister, a daughter of my father and his other wife. She’s a very nice girl, has gone through a lot. What’s most important is that Fáfnir got some new upgrades from my parents but still refuses to teach me how to use them. I’m unsure if he feels I’m unworthy or if he himself doesn’t know how to use them.”

“Maybe Kráka could help you too.”

“Oh, I asked him, but he said that it’s something he can’t comprehend. All the advice he can give me is that I need to focus my energies first. I understand what he means, but I also don’t. I suppose all I can do now is just train myself up.”

“I’d like to help you, but I’m not much use.”

“Nonsense. I’ll make some use of you. I can teach you some things that should be useful even though you’re human. It never hurts to know some basic fighting skills. Just in case another kidnapping happens, you know. Yeah, I know, you got some fight in you already, but it never hurts to know more.”

He chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind that, no.”

Meanwhile Kráka and Fionn’s training was far more intense, with Kráka easily overpowering Fionn and tossing him through at least three trees before he hit the ground and was dragged to a halt.

“You must stop being so stubborn,” Kráka scolded.

“I know…little of what you ask of me…” Fionn grumbled, trying to regain his breath as he sat up.

“I believe in your ability, Fionn, but I don’t believe that you’re being honest with yourself. Just for a few seconds, be honest with me.” Kráka plopped down next to Fionn next to the mound of dirt left from Fionn’s harsh landing. “What is it that you’re hiding from me, that you’re hiding from _all_ of us? I need to know if I’m going to be able to help you. It could be something important enough that it affects the outcome of our success here.”

Fionn hugged his leg and seemed to crawl up defensively within himself, as though he was under threat from something. Even when Kráka had been kicking his ass, Fionn hadn’t showed any signs of weakness and vulnerability. It was just as Kráka thought; it was a secret that hurt Fionn deeply to the core, a wound on the inside.

“Fionn. Why did you run away from your family? I’m sure that it was hell and you went through a lot, but if what I’ve seen from you is any indication, I know that you are strong enough to have endured - though you wouldn’t have been happy about it. I see a man who is strong but stubborn to a fault and who doesn’t run away because things are hard. You would have sooner struck your father down in vengeance then flee because you were harmed. You didn’t run away just to spite your father when he wished something of you, at least that wasn’t the _only_ reason.”

“I’d hardly think a djinn would truly understand,” Fionn snapped.

“Was that racism?” They sighed. “Look, just try me.”

Fionn was silent and averted his gaze for a long while, but both of them were hardly afraid of awkward silence or a long pause of hesitation. Fionn didn’t automatically dismiss the notion and request that the subject be dropped, but he needed time to gather his courage to speak and then to find the words to describe his feelings.

“I…we…my…there is no word for it.”

“Then let’s try this.” They held out their hand for Fionn to take. “Djinns often communicate through magic, expressing and sharing feelings that can’t be put into words. Since djinns come from a world where the magic in the air is even heavier than here in Faerieland, I assume this process is done commonly. We need physical contact in a world like this, but in the world of the djinn the magic in the air can be tapped into like a web that connects us all. I can read your feelings and maybe put them to words for you.”

Fionn glanced down at the offered hand and slowly reached out to take it. He felt Kráka’s hand clench down around his before a pulse went through him, flashing his feelings and laying them out before him. His memories came to mind as well to explain the situation, and Kráka processed it all at once.

 _A girl. Beaten, scorned, hiding away. Her mother, a baby brother, nature, a smile. Taken, taken, taken, taken. Pride, weakness, hatred, strength, shatter, pushing, bending, broken, snap. Run. Change me. What will you give? Hello_.

Fionn snatched his hand away and pulled it close as though to protect it from being snagged again. He was breathing hard, his body and mind ached with fatigue.

“I see,” Kráka said. “You’re a sex-shifter. Transgender. You struck a deal with a demon to change yourself into who you wanted to be, to start a new life away from the court. But in changing yourself, you suppressed the blessing because your body was not your own. That’s why we’re having so much trouble.”

“Am I sinful for choosing my own appearance over that of my people?”

“No, Fionn. Humans don’t have it easy when it comes to this sort of thing; faeries usually have it easier than humans, but not nearly as easy as djinns. Gender and sex mean very little to us, and we can switch on a dime should we so please. With that whole network thanks to the magical realm thing, we can just instantly know what to call someone just by being near them - it’s an instinctual sharing of our minds. You grew up in a tough enough situation without having this on your shoulders as well. I’m sorry for pushing you so hard, but at least now I know.”

“Please, do not tell the Lady Aslaug or Finnegan.”

“Why not?”

“I do not wish…they will treat me differently. They will see me differently by choice or by instinct.”

“They won’t see _anything_ different about you, bud. Though this _does_ complicate things when it comes to your blessing and your ability to save your people. Only your original form has access to your power, but only your current form has the mental strength and courage to wield it. It’s a dilemma - nothing that’s your fault, Fionn. We can work around this. But it might require something similar to what I have.”

“In what manner?”

“I have a split personality in Kuria and I. Kuria is who I must be, who I _want_ to be, but Kráka is who I am, the past that I cannot separate myself from and the past that I never _should_ separate from. As a djinn, I can bring back your original form, but with a little reworking we can make her similar to what I am to Kuria - a part of him that only comes out when needed and is dormant otherwise.”

Fionn straightened up, his eyes gleaming with hope. “So I might save my people and then return to my current state?”

Kráka nodded. “Yes. But I suggest you tell this to Finnegan at least, if not Master.”

Fionn’s posture began to sink once more. “Why? What might his reaction be upon learning of my true nature?”

“Finnegan fell in love with _you_ , Fionn. He didn’t fall in love with your gender or your body or your name, but he fell in love with the you that will be there no matter what you look like or what you call yourself. A ‘ _spirit_ ’ or ‘ _heart_ ’ or ‘ _soul_ ,’ if you would. Whatever you call it, whatever you call yourself, you are you. That’s a lesson that we djinns learn from day one. There are no rules and there are universal rules. To other creatures, faeries are distinguished by their pointed ears, smooth skin, sharp facial features, and to outsiders you all look the same. That’s obviously not true, but only your people can ever see the differences. We djinns, on the other hand, have obvious differences, but in the end, we are all the same. If you were to come to our world, you’d probably see that we all have the same faces, the same bodies, just customized to our own unique personalities, but we are all stereotyped same as any other species. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t individuals. Appearance and inner self are two different things, and I don’t think anyone, least of all your love, will judge you for it.

“Finnegan is a kind guy. I can sense it from him, just from his aura alone. His soul is beautiful, you know that? So radiant and colorful, but so modest and shy at the same time. Djinns can sense auras, sometimes we can even _see_ them, and his is just…alluring. His energy just makes me want to squeeze him like a pillow of wool!”

Fionn smiled. “Yes, he gives off the desire to ravish him with every breath.”

“Heaven’s coat, how true that is.”

“Do you fancy him?”

Kráka shrugged. “Can’t really tell. There’s something special about him, I’m sure. Is he related to an incubus or something?”

Fionn shook his head. “Not to his knowledge. Believe me, I asked.”

“Odd. We must get to the bottom of this. Kuria is curious as well. I feel like he and I are getting more and more confused as the day goes by. I haven’t been this active for so long in _years_. Decades, even.”

Fionn and Kráka had been working for a couple weeks now, each day Kuria returning at the end of their training sessions and then returning by the morning sun’s rise. Kuria was the one who often joined the others when they gathered together for food and spoke of their day’s progress before falling asleep, though Kráka sometimes did manage to hold on until then when he could. Fionn was beginning to notice the similarities and differences between the two, but the line seemed to be blurring each day.

“You must need rest. Please, do not overstrain yourself for my sake. We might work on our new technique on the morrow.”

Kráka chuckled. “That’d be nice. You’re lucky, Fionn. Don’t ever squander what you have, and don’t ever stop fighting for it.”

Kráka closed their eyes and exhaled, their dark skin retracting as though pulling off a sheet. The line between their pale skin and their enchanted djinn skin retreated to their body and then down their arms, finally disappearing as though getting sucked down a drain at the tips of their fingers. Their hair retracted so that it merely draped partly across their face rather than the curtain of white from Kráka, and their facial markings faded away. Kuria’s cloak returned to white as well, before he then began to list and fell over. Fionn instinctively reached out for him and caught him, feeling how light the djinn was and how smooth and pure his aura had become. Like a blank slate. Kráka had been full of so much energy that even Fionn could barely put it to words, but Kuria was simple and basic and…refreshing.

When Kuria opened his eyes, they were a delicate pink rather than a passionate red. Kuria’s smile upon seeing him was gentle as always. Despite the heavy change in appearance, Kráka had been right - no matter what, Kuria’s face always looked the same - the same face shape, the same dimples when he smiled and the same crinkles when he frowned. It was enough to relax Fionn, make his entire body fall into a calmed state no matter what tension was held before.

“Lord Fionn!” Kuria exclaimed.

His voice always rose slightly in pitch when he spoke as Kuria versus the menacing undertones of Kráka’s voice.

“Let us join the others, Kuria,” Fionn declared.

“Haaaai!” he exclaimed, stretching out the syllable as he jumped to his feet, renewed with energy.

Fionn smiled as he followed the djinn directly back to where Aslaug and Finnegan were waiting.

“What happened?”

“I think she broke it,” Finnegan said.

“I did _not_ break it!” Aslaug protested. “It _came_ that way. If anything, _Fáfnir_ broke it.”

“That _still_ implies _you_ broke it.”

Finnegan and Aslaug had been found standing beside a broken sword that was at the epicenter of an enormous crater of destruction that had to be half a kilometer wide. It appeared to have been stabbed into the ground before it had shattered, leaving only a small part of the hilt still in one piece with sword shards scattered about the area. The sword appeared to have once been golden with many engravings, but any words or pictures were indecipherable at present.

Fionn reached out to touch one of the shards but stopped himself just in time. “What sword is this that you have shattered, Aslaug?”

“Gram,” Aslaug said. “Or rather…the remains of Gram, anyway. It was my father’s sword, one of the artifacts that Fáfnir stole from my parents’ tomb. It was placed between the two of them, a sign of respect and chastity. The blade was the sharpest and most powerful in the land, but it came with the danger of its wielder growing arrogant and being struck down by the very creator who bequeathed the blade its power in the first place - Odin himself. Among the many feats Gram was used for while in my father’s possession, slaying Fáfnir is the most significant in this case.”

“Master, the blade appears to have shattered because you were unable to internalize the power stored within,” Kuria said. He was holding up a shard with a gloved hand. “It is reasonable. This blade was forged with the strength of the gods. The amount of magic stored within rivals that of…many human souls, Master. The damage here is pitiful compared to what this blade is capable of. Thank goodness Master’s entire arm was not blown off from activating this weapon’s power. You were not holding this weapon on your person before, Master. How did it come to be if you found it within Master’s parents’ tomb?”

“Fáfnir seemed to have absorbed the weapons somehow, and the only way for me to actually use them is to somehow learn to tame them one by one by summoning them. Fáfnir says that he doesn’t make the rules, the weapons decided this themselves. But I don’t understand why Gram exploded. I was ready to absorb Gram’s power when I did this, but something was stopping me. It’s like…being hungry with a large feast before you and yet just as you raise a bite to your mouth someone shouts that the food is poisoned and you stop. Despite your hunger, you just can’t go through with eating because you’ve been told a reason not to. But I don’t know what the reason that I stopped was. Being ready to accept Gram and then suddenly backing out caused a great deal of backlash and the blade exploded. I was planning on making a straight cut through the ground, and instead I made a crater.”

“Could it be, Master Aslaug, that _you_ were ready, but Master Fáfnir was not?” Kuria suggested.

“This blade _did_ kill Fáfnir, right?” Finnegan followed. “Meaning the guy’s probably got some trauma from it.”

‘ **_Fáfnir, could that be so?_ **’

‘ _I am afraid of no weapon, child._ ’

‘ **_Then how do you explain the hesitation that resulted in the blade’s destruction? I_ ** **knew** **_that it felt familiar. It was the same feeling that you give me whenever your emotions start to flow to the surface so that I feel them as well._ **’

‘ _That is not the case, Aslaug! Why would I fear a weapon that has long since been forgotten? I’ve been struck by blades before,_ you’ve _been struck by blades before. What difference does Gram make from the rest? Pain is pain, fear is natural for survival. I do not fear Gram any more than I fear other methods of my harm and destruction._ ’

Despite his confident words, Aslaug could feel that unease that had stopped her during the incident arising within her chest again. It was weird, Fáfnir’s discord. The dragon was so rarely afraid that Aslaug was rarely afraid as well. They knew trepidation, but they had never known true fear before. This was not fear, but it was unease that would beget fear if neglected.

Aslaug sighed. “He would never admit it, but there’s _something_ about Gram that frightens him. It frightens him more than his lust for power and his greed.”

“Something that can get past Fáfnir’s kleptomania?” Finnegan asked. “Oh, gods, this really _is_ bad.”

‘ _Hey!_ ’ Fáfnir protested.

“He _does_ have a point,” Aslaug muttered. “In any case, if you don’t admit your fears, Fáfnir, Gram’s power will be denied to us.”

‘ _I’m not afraid of some weapon, Aslaug. Just because it killed me doesn’t mean that I remember it as some kind of harbinger of my destruction._ ’

“Living in denial will get you nowhere.”

“Master!” Kuria suddenly jumped. “We must tell you the results of today’s training!”

Perhaps it was just Fáfnir’s ego, but Aslaug was becoming very fond of Kuria’s perky voice calling her ‘Mast-a!’

“We believe we may have a solution to my…suppressed abilities,” Fionn elaborated. “But…I must explain my history so that you might understand in order to aid me in my…acceptance.”

“We can talk over dinner,” Aslaug announced. “Let’s set up _outside_ of the crater filled with deadly shards of Gram, please.”

Fionn was quiet and pensive as Aslaug gathered a large bundle of firewood and Kuria lit it with his finger. Aslaug continued to be jealous of Kuria’s skill over elemental magic. Aslaug had the power over Radial Vectors - her RV, as it would now be dubbed and Fáfnir could do nothing to stop her - but beyond that she realized just how much growth she still had to do. Usually Fionn was the one to light the fire, as he was a fire-based faerie born with skill in the realm of fire and heat, but he didn’t seem in the mood that night, and Kuria often used his magic whenever he could be helpful as well.

“What I tell you, I admit with a heavy heart,” Fionn said, staring into the fire.

Fionn slowly began his tale of being born into a court where he had very few sisters and near countless brothers. He had grown up bullied by his brothers and scorned by his elder sister who was his mentor. Growing up, he had known that there was something that made him different; his father refused to let anyone kill Fionn but constantly tested his ability and skill to an unreasonable standard. Fionn’s power over fire seemed to be the cause, but he didn’t understand how that factored into what his father wanted.

“Sometimes I believed he was testing my limits in terms of my offensive prowess, straining the limits of my magic skills and stamina. Other times, I believe he was simply torturing me for his own amusement.”

Finnegan ran his hand along Fionn’s arm. “So _that’s_ where most of these came from.”

He referred to an amalgamation of light scars that blanketed every visible inch of his skin. Some of them were so light that you wouldn’t notice them unless you were specifically searching, and others were big and obvious.

“Yes, though I find many of them beautiful. I have many scars of my own choice through hunting and surviving of my own accord. They are proof that I have endured hardships and survived, and so I walk forward against the trials before me with the reassurance that I have lived before and I can do so again.”

“Survival is weird,” Kuria announced. “Why do you strive so hard to live, Lord Fionn?”

“What kind of question is that?” Finnegan asked. “Are you asking if he’s suicidal because of his hard past?”

“Kuria is a djinn who was never taught the nuances of humanity,” Aslaug explained. “He genuinely asks why we live and what we live for. The answer to that question is something that perhaps he can never understand - or, to our hopes, he may _come_ to understand with time. Djinns work differently than us; they feel emotions differently. Especially since Kuria was raised by a human man rather than with the djinn society, he truly has very little reference to free will. His human that raised him, one that he calls ‘Grandfather,’ died in his sleep. Kuria didn’t understand the concept of life and death, and so for a long time he just believed that his father was sleeping and did not wake up. Unfortunately, that left Kuria with no one to give him orders and no one to explain to him the concepts of the world as they come - what is right, what is wrong, and why. He is a blank slate with very little will of his own. Any will that he _does_ possess comes in the form of the commands he receives from a worthy master.”

“So you don’t understand what it is to love and to hate?” Finnegan asked.

Kuria shook his head. “I know what it is to love and to hate, Finnegan-san. But I cannot fully comprehend all the causes that beget levels of love and hate. You love Lord Fionn, I understand that. Master loves you and Lord Fionn. But they are different love. I cannot say what makes them different, just that they are. I hate Master’s enemies, but I do not know if what I feel can truly be called ‘hate.’ Hate comes from within, a deep abhorrence of one soul for another. I do not have the soul of a human, and so that must mean I cannot feel hate. Perhaps what I interpret as hate is simply the factual knowledge that Master opposes a creature and so must I.”

“I believe that Kuria is capable of understanding humans,” Aslaug said. “But I am unsure about if he can fully empathize with us. Sometimes he reminds me of Fáfnir; maybe that’s why they get along so well that Fáfnir was able to let Kuria into his life as a servant.”

‘ _I’m not_ heartless _, Aslaug! How dare you accuse me of such a thing?!_ ’

‘ **_I can sense the sarcasm from a mile away._ **’

‘ _Maybe just a_ little _sarcasm._ ’

“To answer your question, Kuria, I had very little reason to continue my life of misery, it’s true. But I had my mother, whose smile urged me onwards to see it each day. Then my younger brother was born, a child of both my father _and_ my mother unlike my other half-brothers who are only children of my father and that of many other women. They were my reasons to live, and so my father took them away from me. I ran away from my home, my duties, and my father. In the end, it became the best decision of my life, and the first one I made where I defied the path my father laid before me and chose my own.

“I tried to kill myself once, but I was saved by the gods. I assume it is because they need me alive for something as my father does as well. Power from the gods is what he wants, and the gods want me alive whether I bless my father or not. But I made a deal…”

Fionn then went on to explain how he made a deal with a demon to change who and what he was. For a faerie that was always so held together and calm, even Aslaug felt pain as he slowly described his experience and his history.

“Fionn, this shouldn’t be something that you should be ashamed of,” Aslaug said.

“I know that well and true, and yet my feelings of self-resentment do not fade with the knowledge that my thoughts are fallible.”

Finnegan wrapped Fionn in a tight hug. “I like you this way, but your past makes you who you are. I’ll love you either way, all right?”

‘ _He’s tolerated you for_ this _long; I doubt there’s anything that can chase this boy off._ ’

“See? Even Fáfnir agrees,” Aslaug said. “Finnegan has chosen to love you as a faerie, as an immortal, a prince, as a socially inept loser-”

“I never said that!” Finnegan protested.

“-and as a hunted faerie, no less,” Aslaug continued. “I doubt there’s anything that would deter him if all _that_ isn’t enough to ward him away.”

“On a less cynical note, maybe I just love him and don’t care about his appearance and I can accept anything that I might not like because I _love him_. Did I mention that I love him?”

“Ooo, the sass when you’re defending your boyfriend is just entertaining.”

“There are qualities you aren’t fond of?” Fionn asked.

“No! I just mean that if ever we disagree on something or if ever I find something that I don’t like about you - something as trivial as a dislike of some food or something as important as what we should be doing about your dad - either way I’m not going to stop loving you, all right?”

Fionn’s face relaxed and he exhaled before leaning closer to Finnegan, resting his head on Finnegan’s, and inhaling the smell of his hair. It seemed to be something that he liked to do, just taking in the scent of things around him. Aslaug couldn’t tell if it was a faerie thing or if it was just a Fionn thing. Finnegan seemed to be used to it since they relaxed against each other automatically. Aslaug was used to being left out when those two got into their own little world, and Kuria honestly didn’t understand so he just kept quiet and accepted it without much awkwardness on his part. Aslaug was honestly relieved that Kuria didn’t speak up and ruin the moment. He seemed to have picked up enough social cues - or just lacked the proper amount of social cues - to leave them alone in their peace.

Training after that day consisted of all four of them together working to unlock their powers under the direction of Kráka. The djinn was far different than Kuria with far more knowledge, intuition, and fighting prowess, but often his memories were flimsy at best. He started to talk about things without thinking about it, be it knowledge or his past experiences, but then if he started thinking too hard, he forgot what he was talking about and didn’t remember where he learned things.

Fire was the first thing Aslaug learned because both Kráka and Fionn could teach her and fire was something that Fáfnir was familiar with as a dragon.

“Dragons often use crystals to breathe fire, but that’s not always the case. Did Fáfnir ever use crystals?”

“Maybe _that’s_ the reason behind the kleptomania,” Finnegan realized.

‘ _Why would I_ eat _perfectly good crystals?_ ’

‘ **_Crystals aren’t_ ** **that** **_shiny or sparkly._ **’

‘ _The only crystals that are useful to a dragon are the enchanted ones, which_ are _both shiny and sparkly. Regular things that you humans call crystals are just rocks that are different colors._ ’

“The hardest part will always be activating the initial access to your power,” Kráka said. “Fionn was born naturally with the skill unlocked for him, and djinns are naturally adept at magic so the barriers that prevent us from unlocking new magic abilities are less trouble. For you, Fáfnir naturally will help make things easier than if you were a regular human, but it is still up to you to learn on your own.”

“Fire is a dangerous thing,” Fionn explained. “I suppose it is difficult to put into human words. Fire is predictable yet unpredictable, it is wild, yet it serves the purpose of heat, light, and often when a field or forest is burnt down, the soil is more fertile. Fire is a natural part of life, a necessary one, but it can destroy both good and evil. When controlling it on a small scale it is easy to contain. I can control its heat and its light and contain its destruction. But it wishes to be free. It dances and never holds in place unless specifically contained. It is warm and comforting, but if you do not hold your ground and show your strength, it will consume you instead. I have long since demonstrated my power and tamed the fire within. I might be able to help you activate your fire, but I cannot promise that I can help you tame it. That is something only you can do.”

Aslaug nodded. “Show me what you can.”

Fionn gave her a leaf and sat down in the grass, Aslaug sitting in front of him and mimicking his stance.

“The way that I learned to first summon my fire was under guidance from my sister. She is harsh in her methods, but she is very wise. Breathe and summon what magical energies you can. I assume you have some experience with magical meditation?”

Aslaug nodded. “Expanding my Radial Vectors requires meditation. I’m just not sure if they’re considered very magical. They mostly work by physical force, so I can move things around in my radius, slice through things, use it to grab onto things and pull myself towards them or hang on it, and I can control anything within my radius like the air quality, energy signatures, smells, sounds, and tastes. I’ve never tried fire before, it never came up, but I’ve held candles filled with fire and blown all the air that I could into the fire of a candle to spread it as wide and far as I could.”

“Well now we are to summon fire itself. Just take deep breaths, focus on your internal energy reserves - the magic within your body rather than outside in your radius. Fire is heat; triggered by heat, fuel, and combustion, and you must eventually provide all three. For now, the leaf shall begin as your fuel and you must only summon heat and incite combustion. Focus it to your fingertips, concentrate it within the leaf. Start from a single pinprick and let the fire burn lightly. Not too much. Once the leaf is burnt away, all that shall be left is the fire itself. Sustain it if you can. If you cannot, I will assist you.”

He closed his eyes and a small red dot appeared at the center of the leaf he held between his hands. The light hum and sizzle caused it to start to burn the leaf with a small singe rather than a full-out flame. The burning ring expanded outwards in a circular pattern. Fionn pulled his fingers out and away, leaving the leaf hovering in front of him, before the singed ring expanded to consume the rest of the leaf. With the leaf’s consumption, the fire lit, and an entire flame was left hovering between his palms. He opened his eyes, readjusting his hand so that the flame hovered above his left palm.

“This is your end goal. Activating the flame is the first step. Sustaining it is the next step, preventing it from growing out of your control and taming it.”

It took Aslaug three days before she could even summon her magic and concentrate it in general, let alone direct it anywhere. She could feel a small flare of energy that definitely exhausted her, but sometimes she was unsure if that was just her imagination. Fionn put a hand on her arm and closed his eyes, and after a moment, he nodded to her.

“You have summoned unconcentrated heat energy.” As a faerie who couldn’t lie and a creature connected to magic, Aslaug took his word for it. “This is a process that takes time, Aslaug. It is impressive that you have managed anything in such a short amount of time. It took me seven days when under the pressure of my sister and family to even begin this exercise and cause mere smoke to appear on the leaf. It took me a fortnight to create a pinprick of a hole. And I was born with natural skill in this area of magic. The path is laid before you Aslaug and you are able to move forward along it. That is far more than many have.”

Aslaug had to resist Fáfnir’s urges to hurry it up and continued her meditations. Meanwhile Kráka took the opportunity to teach both Fionn and Finnegan in different ways.

“One, nature.” He handed Fionn a bundle of seeds. “Two, artifacts.” He handed Finnegan a small, compact object that looked like maybe a compass. It looked to be made of some sort of green crystal, nothing that Finnegan had ever seen before though. “These are the key to upping your power levels to their fullest extent. First, for Fionn, I finally figured out what it is that we need to upgrade your power for that blessing. You have the powers of Phoenix, a god of fire here in the mystical world - including Faerie - and therefore that extends to the Flame of Life. Meaning that life and death are at your command. Nature is an easy tool to weave to your advantage, you just have to do it right. Fire is destructive, yes, but it also begets growth.”

Fionn looked down at the seeds in his hands. “I must find a way to grow these seeds with my energies?”

Kráka nodded. “Smart as always. We’re still going to need to find a way to split your personality and regain your old self and her powers, but the only way that I can conceive is through this special plant that I know of called Last Life. All parts of the plant can be utilized, from the fruit to the frawns, and they can be used to make a concoction that brings out your true nature. To most people it simply reduces them to a baby before they had developed into the person they are as an adult, but for certain someones that have split personalities, mystic rebirth cycles, another personality might be able to roam free. On humans it only works some of the time; they have to be a pretty unique case. It doesn’t grow recreationally; it has to be specifically grown by someone with mystic origins. In this case, the only way we’ll be able to get ahold of it is for you to tap into the power of Phoenix’s Flame of Life and grow what we need. We don’t have the right seeds; it has to be something you summon yourself by your own choice. For now, start small with these.”

“And me?” Finnegan asked. “What’s this…thing supposed to do for me?”

“It’s an ancient artifact that will accept only the worthiest. Or so the stories go. I don’t know a lot about it, but I _do_ know this: it will only accept a human wielder and it is built to put you on par with supernatural creatures. To aid or oppose them, depends on the wielder.”

Finnegan looked down to the trinket in his hand. “How does it work?”

“Well that’s really up to the wielder. Only a human can get it to work, and it bonds to each human in a different way.”

Finnegan looked down to the object and turned it in his hands. It had beautiful engravings and accents with blue and green colors swirling about. Some parts were raised, and others were carved. Finnegan moved his fingers around, poking and prodding for some kind of button. Maybe it opened like those compacts that women often used? Or like a compass. Yeah. Compasses opened like that too. He’d seen some pill cases as well that were like that.

He popped it open and was blindsided as something shot out from the artifact, engulfing his arms and wrapping tight around his entire body, covering his face and arms and legs and he couldn’t fight back or move. There were some kind of rope or wires constraining him, covering every square-inch of his body. He began to panic as he screamed and gasped for breath. He wasn’t sure if he was still standing up straight or if he’d fallen down. He wasn’t aware of anything that his body was feeling anymore.

“Finnegan!”

Kráka grabbed Fionn’s arm to hold him back. “This is his trial. The weapon will accept or reject him, but it won’t hurt him if it rejects him. Though the artifact _can_ be used by supernaturals, it’s far more dangerous and much harder to control, and the intention _must_ center around the benefits of a human.”

The crystal bindings shimmered around Finnegan and melded together as though they were melting into liquid metal. Fionn had to fight the urge to rush to his aid, but the liquid metal began to fade, and a moment later Fionn realized that it was actually melting _into_ Finnegan’s skin, seeping through every pore, and draining into him to leave no trace. When Finnegan could finally breathe again, he opened his eyes slowly and saw he was lying in the grass with Fionn and Kráka hovering over him.

“Ah, awake so soon,” Kráka exclaimed. “And I was just getting used to watching your sleeping face.”

“He _is_ quite handsome when taken by sleep,” Fionn agreed.

“What happened?” Finnegan asked.

“It seems the artifact bonded with you,” Kráka said. “It accepted you as its master. Do you feel any different?”

Finnegan looked down at his body. “I don’t really feel any different, no.”

‘ _Well that’s rude, kid. I’ve given you the power of the gods and you don’t even acknowledge me!_ ’

Finnegan jumped. “What was that?”

“The artifact! It can speak to its wielder once they’re bonded,” Kráka explained. “What’d he say?”

“Something about the power of the gods?”

“Yes! He can give you power on par with the gods. I’ve never seen it in action though, I’ve only heard the tales.”

“Is he safe?” Fionn asked.

“If the artifact bonded with him, it will not harm him. It will actually protect him, though to what extent, I’m unsure. But at least now you all have something to train with, so Finnegan doesn’t get left out!”

“Yay…I guess,” Finnegan said.


	9. The Coup

It was a year before their training session came to an end. Fionn had promised to bequeath the king with the blessings he desired once Fionn gained access to them, and after a little over a year, he managed to stabilize the technique. There were still many things he didn’t understand about himself and his origins, but for now, he had what he needed: a basic understanding and control of his secret power.

He had power over fire, the Fire of Destruction, and the Fire of Life. Fire was the key to both life and death, and so the blessing of fire was the only thing keeping the faerie lands under his father and beyond from falling into instability and ruin. And if the supernatural realm of faerie fell, there was no telling how other supernatural realms and even the human realm would be affected.

However, Fionn had only promised to bless the current king. That didn’t mean the king couldn’t change in the meantime while he learned his powers.

There were more than enough of the king’s children who wished to have his position, but in Faerie selfishness was not something that ruled all of their beings. The children of the king knew that many of them were not worthy or capable of taking their father’s place and they were more content as princes. After all, this king was centuries old with wisdom and experience and therefore power. Ruling a kingdom anew meant needing to assert your power and capabilities to a harsh audience who was used to a king who knew everything about ruling and how to respond to challenge and hardships with grace. Making decisions were tough, and when your decisions could make or break an entire kingdom, the pressure and stress was too much for some, and they were all aware of it.

That was why, when Aslaug led a rebellion against the king, she had already carefully chosen a worthy heir to the throne to ascend.

Fionn’s younger brother had been banished from the court of faerie to roam the lands as a slave to a wandering mercenary group. That was the best way to describe them; it was a well-known group led by a well-known, feared, and respected man. They did horrific deeds; they took up jobs but mostly hunted for themselves. Most of the time, banishment there was for criminal sentences, and the leader was able to keep them all in check. There was no bias when it came to the leader; he prevented unnecessary violence and bullying, and he punished those who had done wrong in accordance to the severity of the crime committed, but he did not dish out unnecessarily cruel punishments or unnecessary damage to those who had done nothing wrong or very little wrong. He was a simple man. And he was just that, a man. He was kind, even friendly to those who earned his respect. He was formal and terrifying to enemies or business partners, but he was a sensible man that could be reasoned with.

Though Fionn’s brother was not happy in his exile, he was also not doing as bad as he could’ve been. He was protected by the leader and his rules, and so long as he followed orders there was nothing to worry about. But he was still alone. He avoided the other members of his group and was slightly arrogant, being born a prince, which made the other members hate him. But then he’d found a friend - an exile given to the group because he was half human and therefore untrustworthy; he could lie. Half breeds who could lie were both valued and feared - valued if they could be used for their lying, feared because there’s no telling what their true intentions are. If a liar is raised within Faerie, they know exactly how to lie to faeries who trust the word of pure-bloods and mistrust the word of half-breeds; they know how to lie flawlessly to a species who study lying on a regular basis. That was why this boy was thrown away.

Fionn’s brother met this half-breed and the two outcasts bonded.

That was how Fionn’s brother learned about humans and the struggles of caring for someone who was human. The half-breed had been raised in the human world and thrown to Faerie when living with human was no longer an option - he had the appearance of a fey that was understandably unnerving to humans since fey were dangerous to humans most of the time. That meant that he didn’t understand Faerie, and therefore he didn’t know how to handle faeries, let alone hostile faeries who were constantly suspicious of him. Both of them had a lot to learn from each other, since neither of them were normal.

When Aslaug had approached their superior and asked to see Fionn’s brother, she also met his partner and saw how the two had changed each other. She had initially wanted to simply rescue Fionn’s brother for Fionn’s sake, but it was then that she found a prince of the court who had gone through trials like no other, trials that had humbled him and had challenged him greatly. That was how Aslaug found the next king of Faerie.

“The king can have no spouse,” Fionn’s brother had confessed when he and Aslaug were alone. “Consorts, mistresses, yes, but no spouse or spouses. I…I fear I cannot rule when I am no prince, no leader. I am simply a follower, a survivor. I am content with my life, harsh as it may be, because I have enough. You would ask of me to abandon all I care for and accept a burden too great for me to bear?”

“You might not bear the burden alone, not in the beginning. Your humbleness demonstrates character that I see in none of your brothers. You are not confident in yourself, but you are far more intelligent and capable than any of the others. And you are kind. You have been affected by humans. And that is why you are worthy to lead. Fionn and I will be there to help you during the beginning. But nothing is stopping you from keeping your friend around, as a lover or not.”

“He is not a lover. Not yet.”

“You can afford him a better life. And as a king, you may do as you wish when your kingdom does not demand your attention. It is a grueling task if you are unprepared, but you will be taught and guided. We shall be your advisors. I need someone that I can trust to rule properly, and I believe you will be the one. Beyond that, Fionn has some surprises for you that might come in handy.”

It took some convincing, but Fionn’s younger brother finally agreed.

With the heir done and decided, Aslaug went to work planning her rebellion. It took some time, and along with learning her new power she also had to struggle through breaking through new barriers and reaching new heights internally.

Fionn’s older sister who had been his harsh mentor once before was of great help, though Aslaug had to do some convincing of _her_ as well. She wanted to ensure the survival of the kingdom and worried for Fionn’s safety as he grew, pushing him to grow stronger and wiser faster than perhaps he was ready for. She did it out of love, but that didn’t negate the animosity between them. Fionn’s mentor sister was fierce and ruthless and though she had a compassionate heart, it was hard to see beyond her cold outer shell. She looked after the few daughters of the Faerie court because she knew how tough it was to be born to a king who was prejudiced against daughters. It involved a long tale of wanting a son but getting a daughter, but now very few daughters were tolerated, and Fionn’s sister had known that he (‘she,’ at the time) was different, that he had great power and a lot of expectations of him, and she only wanted to protect him. If that meant being harsh on him and training him to be able to handle any grueling reality thrown at him, so be it. She wasn’t in it to be a kind sister; she was there to keep him alive.

She was very intelligent and an expert planner when it came to battle organization. She had no intentions of leading or usurping the throne even though she definitely could, but so long as there was a proper leader to take the place of the king for many centuries to come, even for the rest of eternity, then she would accept it. She knew Fionn’s brother, and she was satisfied. She did most of the planning and preparation when Aslaug was otherwise occupied, but Aslaug found that she enjoyed learning from the fey warrior woman.

“We’ll have teams circle around left and right, placed at equidistant strategic locations while we storm the front and your servants do damage control.”

“Kuria won’t let a single one of them die, his orders are properly equipped.”

“Then we move swiftly. The new king must be the one to deal the final blow.”

“He’s ready and well-informed. He has been surviving in a dangerous group for the past few years, and though he didn’t find many friends, that didn’t mean he didn’t earn his place there and then some. He knows how to handle himself, and he holds no sympathies for the king that abandoned him.”

“The plan is in place. We move at dawn.”

Taking the palace was easy. Aslaug hadn’t realized just how powerful she’d gotten, along with her allies. Some of the strongest guards of the fey court were somewhat of a challenge, but nothing that a little intuition and improvising that couldn’t solve.

By the time the moon had risen, a new king would be in place.


	10. Return

“I’m not sure how that comes into play.”

“It means that we need to prioritize food and stone production at the moment,” Aslaug said.

Kuria sighed. “This is all too much for me. I _knew_ I wouldn’t make a good leader.”

She tilted her head in confusion. No one was insinuating that _Kuria_ was a leader. “What do you mean?”

He shrugged. “Dunno.” Another instance of Kuria’s unconscious memory fluctuations.

“I will divert the resource funding accordingly,” Fionn’s brother said. “Thank you for your assistance.”

It was only after a decade when things began to calm down. The beginning was rough, but together all of them had managed to learn how to rule the fey kingdoms. The new king was learning to slowly take more and more of the burden until he made most of the decisions and consulted his counsel occasionally. His reputation was assisted by the fact that he’d been able to renew the blessing on the Court that the previous king had failed to do. They promised to stay in touch even when Aslaug’s party finally left Faerie for the real world, but Fionn’s brother seemed to have things handled, and he always had Fionn’s mentor sister with him at all times both for protection and for leading advice.

Despite Kuria’s self-deprecation, he actually turned out to be a master strategist when he didn’t mean to be. Anytime that he had to lead troops there were never any situations he couldn’t handle and many times he came up with plans and improvisations all on his own without any of Aslaug’s orders influencing him through his magic. Fionn suspected that Kuria was hardly new to the idea of leading and diplomacy. But there was also a rogue-ness to his style, similar to how Fionn and his brother fought from their time in the wilds surviving in a non-domestic situation.

“How much time do you think has passed since we left?” Finnegan wondered.

“Who knows?” Aslaug said. “We can only go back home and ask around. Time in Faerie fluctuates. Being ten years older _here_ could be anywhere from a day to another extra decade to the actual, real time that we’ve been gone.”

“I don’t feel much older, to be honest,” Finnegan said. “I thought that being in my mid-thirties would be a lot more challenging. Just based on what I’ve seen as a kid.”

“There are places where most don’t live to see thirty, Finnegan. Your Io - your bonded artifact - seems to be helping sustain your life from within. Along with helping you heal, its regenerative effects appear to extend to restoring your dying cells without limits. Your genes themselves are being protected from decay.”

“It’s amazing, really. I would’ve never been able to learn things like about cells, and how they replicate, and how each replication slowly changes until imperfections occur, and how that’s why we age. If only humans could be so enlightened.”

“They will learn on their own time, Finnegan,” Fionn promised. “Humans are capable, though it may take many generations. And we fey will watch. All creatures evolve throughout history, and humans are no different. Watching them grow is entertaining.”

“Still. Not many humans have the opportunities that I have. I’m lucky to have met you all.”

“It is an honor for me as well, Finnegan-san!” Kuria exclaimed.

“We should finish up what training we can while we travel back home,” Aslaug said. “Once we leave the magic-rich forests and lands of the fey, magic will become significantly harder. Magic here isn’t as thick and nutrient as, say, the land of the djinns, but it is still much better than the human world. In the human world, all of us will face challenges in training once more. I’m not even sure Kuria will be able to sustain Kráka.”

“I am unsure as well, Master,” Kuria admitted. He smiled his sweet, innocent, bright smile that seemed to lighten the whole area. Kuria never changed, and Aslaug (and she assumed the others) were glad for it. Kuria’s warm smile even pushed them all through the political turmoil. “All the more reason we must make the most of the time that remains. Kráka must have more wisdom to share with you all before they depart. As we journey, we might say our goodbyes in case they are not to return.”

“Do not say such things,” Fionn said. He seemed disquieted.

“Fionn, is there something wrong?” Aslaug asked.

Fionn opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He closed his mouth and Aslaug could see him pondering the words to use, but he couldn’t come to the right conclusion.

“I think we’ve all become fond of Kráka,” Finnegan said. “They’re a part of our gang, a part of our crew, they hold a piece of our hearts. It just wouldn’t be the same without them.”

Aslaug sighed. “Kuria’s still very strong by djinn standards, so perhaps he can learn to summon Kráka as he pleases while we all train up to maintain our skill level even in the human world. For now, you should say your farewells - farewell, but not goodbye.”

The next time that Kráka emerged to train them ended very oddly.

“I’m not sure that I can really say much more,” Kráka said. “You’ve grown a lot, both of you. Ah, this time together has felt long, but really, what is a single decade in comparison to a lifetime?”

“It might yet be some time before you can emerge once more,” Fionn said grimly. “I…I will long for your return.”

“We’ll miss you,” Finnegan agreed.

“I will miss you as well,” Kráka said. “It’s too bad. A whole ten years…I don’t know what I expected. I guess I thought I’d have more time.”

“You will,” Finnegan said. “You’ll be back. And we’ll be waiting for you when you do. Until then, Kuria’s not bad company, of course.”

“Of course. But it’s hard, sometimes. I’m asleep but dreaming with Kuria. I’m not Kuria, but I am. I can see you; I want to be able to interact with you, feel your presence, hear your voices clearly. It’s just hard being unaware of whether what you see is real or not. I can’t tell if who and what I am is real, what my past is, what my future entails, and even the present is constantly blurry and it’s hard to tell what has truly happened to me, happened to Kuria and by _extension_ me - technically - and what it all a hallucination, or maybe a memory merging with my current ones as most dreams can confuse the two.”

“That’s…rough,” Finnegan said awkwardly.

Kráka laughed. “You are so adorable, Finnegan. I appreciate your attempt at comfort while simultaneously admitting that you cannot fully sympathize. You are truly a unique soul.”

Finnegan didn’t seem to know how to react. “Um…thanks.”

Kráka quickly stepped closer and then leaned down to seal their lips on Finnegan’s before the human could process what was happening. It only lasted a moment, but Finnegan’s entire body shivered, and his lips tingled with warmth from the ghost of the kiss.

“Sorry,” Kráka said. “Had to do that before I…”

The djinn’s eyes rolled upwards, and they exhaled as they listed to the side. Finnegan jumped but Fionn was there to catch Kráka before they fell and hit the ground. Their colors slowly faded white to Kuria, but he didn’t wake up immediately.

“Kráka seems to have strained their power in maintaining their form for so long,” Fionn observed.

Finnegan looked down at the unconscious form of Kuria. His features were delicate and ethereal, as he always was considering he wasn’t human. Kuria when he was sleeping was always so…peaceful. Finnegan instinctively reached out and swept his white bangs to the side.

“Fionn…”

“I believe you care for Kráka.”

“Well sure, but…”

“I am fine if you desire them, Finnegan.”

“No! That’s not…”

“Finnegan.” He reached out and took Finnegan’s hand. “You know we fey are not against a multitude of lovers. So long as you love someone with all your heart, I will do so as well.”

“That’s not what I meant, I just…”

“I desire them as well. If you would allow it, I would ask your desires to align with mine.”

Finnegan blinked, opening his mouth to speak but finding that words failed him. He knew that faeries were different from humans, but he’d gotten used to Fionn and Fionn’s faerie quirks had become natural to him. Even so, this was enough to render him speechless. He didn’t have any argument against the faerie, he couldn’t bring himself to say he was against the idea presented, but he also couldn’t bring himself to say anything in favor of the prospect either. Maybe he was afraid, maybe he was embarrassed. He really knew he shouldn’t be surprised by Fionn’s suggestion, and he knew he shouldn’t be embarrassed when it came to Fionn _or_ Kuria/Kráka’s opinions. But what about others? Aslaug would be fine with anything; she probably wouldn’t care at worst and would be supportive at best.

“Worry not,” Fionn said. “You need not decide in so abrupt an instance.”

Fionn carried Kuria while the three of them returned to where Aslaug was waiting, tending to a fire with her magic. She had hunted down some food for them (quite literally) and had apologized to some gods and whatnot about taking life within Faerie, but she didn’t really care much considering she was more powerful than any challenge that had come her way and she was also comrades with a king of Faerie.

“Since I’m married to Finnegan, Finnegan is your lover, and your brother is the king, does that technically mean I’m related to Faerie royalty?” she wondered aloud.

“I believe it is only a title,” Fionn said. “Royal monarchies work as such that only descendants of royal blood truly hold the royal status, and lovers are merely consorts. In the case of my brother, he cannot wed or betroth his lover alone. That is why he was so hesitant to ascend, but in the end, he still has the power to favor his love and keep them together for as long as possible. Though my brother may yet have to take up a new lover in the future, he is spending his days tied to his current love - protected and cherishing their time. They are secluded from their life of travel in the olden days, but they are together. And should the king desire travel, he may still venture through his lands; his duties and position only require him to remain within Faerie.”

“He can travel to the human world for a short period of time and can go to some rare locations where the Faerie realm and the human realm blur - and the king has access to a couple houses in those places. I believe they’re adjusting after ten years.”

Aslaug finished cooking her meat over the fire and held up the stick with her meal to take a large bite. Sometimes she instinctively activated her reinforced dragon teeth - you know, the ones that could rip muscle from bone - when she ate, and she wasn’t modest about eating like a lady. Especially since she’d been living in Faerie rather than with her noble family, she’d let loose.

“You know, the Vikings value women warriors,” she said. “Women are just as important as men and just as vicious - if not more. We should go be Vikings later. Screw nobility. Let’s go be peasant warriors for a bit.”

Fionn chuckled. “Perhaps. Eternity is a long time to grow bored, and we might try new things.”

“Eternity…” Finnegan muttered.

“You’ve been pretty quiet this night,” Aslaug noticed. “Did something happen during training?”

Finnegan shook his head. “Not much, really. We’ve pretty much reached the limits to what Kráka can teach us. I’m wondering about eternity. You all are functionally immortal, right?”

“Faeries and djinns can die of old age sometimes, but yes, they will live for as long as they want unless killed by an outside force. Not sure about me and Fáfnir, but I’d assume so. He assumes so too.”

“Kráka said that the Io will help my healing factor and protects my cells from decay. It has so far resisted my aging for the past ten years at least, but I’m still changing. I just…humans aren’t meant to be immortal. What if…?”

Fionn took Finnegan’s hand and put it to his cheek - a tradition that Fionn seemed fond of and Finnegan didn’t seem to protest to. The Faerie leaned into Finnegan’s hand as though to comfort him, and Aslaug smiled as Finnegan instinctively relaxed his body and unconsciously leaned his forehead to touch Fionn’s and closed his eyes. They entered a sort of meditative trance together, and one didn’t know any better, they might say the two were reading each other’s minds. Hell, Aslaug didn’t know any better. Maybe they were communicating entire conversations, just in their own little way; she was familiar with the kind of communication that didn’t require words, just like how she spoke to animals.

“Fionn…”

“Never think the worst of a situation,” Fionn said lightly. “Do not delude yourself, not of an eternally blessed future nor an ephemeral one. There are ways to bring you immortality. There are ways to bond our hearts and souls and share my life with yours. But you must be sure, for one day you might desire death and I will force life upon you. The long years of an immortal are not to be known by human minds and bodies. You will change, Finnegan, change greatly. What makes your life so beautiful is the knowledge that it ends. That is why you are superior to me, superior to Kuria and Kráka and why Aslaug is more powerful than Fáfnir could ever be without her. Death and what is done before it consumes the person is a beautiful process, and a natural one. Immortality is torturous if you are unprepared for it, and what you might become with enough time should cause you to tremble and quake with fear. It does so for me. But that does not mean I do not desire your company for the rest of my eternity if you would so have me. But the decision is not to be made hastily. You’ve enough weight to bear on your consciousness already.”

Finnegan exhaled lightly and leaned forward to close the small distance between them and kiss the faerie. “You know I love you, right?”

“Of course, Finnegan. And I will never cease to reciprocate your love, even should it one day be unrequited.”

“Never. I will never stop loving you, no matter what I say or do or what happens. I will love you with the whole of my heart.”

“But are you capable of letting the whole of your heart split to embrace another?”

Aslaug felt very out of place as the two exchanged their conversation. She always felt out of place when those two got in their little space, and at this point she’d gotten used to feeling out of place. Didn’t mean she didn’t feel uncomfortable anyway. She looked down at the sleeping Kuria, who wore a peaceful expression as he slept. She wished she could be as carefree as Kuria sometimes. Kráka held the burdens of their past while Kuria could simply roam around free of worry and care so long as he had a master to follow to make the decisions for him. Aslaug was jealous of Kuria in that sense. Fáfnir was not. He didn’t want to be suppressed and nothing but a tool that required another in order to be useful. Innocents and ignorance could be peaceful, but Fáfnir didn’t find peace in inaction. Aslaug, however, could grow weary with time. Fionn was right about that; humans weren’t supposed to know what eternity felt like. Aslaug wasn’t entirely human, it’s true, but she was still considered _partially_ human. Human enough to know what it was like and what to fear and what to cherish.

“Is there something I’m missing?” Aslaug asked, looking between the two of them. “Oh, right. Sorry to interrupt.”

Finnegan chuckled and pulled away from Fionn. “I’ll explain later. For now, can we just get some sleep?”

Aslaug nodded. “Sure,” she said lightly.

‘ _NO! Why?! I wanna_ knooooooooow!’ Fáfnir whined.

‘ **_Snoopy dragon,_ **’ Aslaug chided.

‘ _What_ else _am I supposed to do while cooped up in here? If you’re gonna keep me on the bench for so long, can you at least give me a good story to keep me entertained?_ ’

‘ **_You’re such high maintenance._ **’

‘ _You love me._ ’

Though Finnegan promised to explain soon, he didn’t seem eager to volunteer the information the next morning. Kuria woke up, and though dazed and woozy, he was still perky as ever. Aslaug insisted that he get some rest before they got moving again, but Kuria was up and running at full power by the time the sun had risen to the highest point. After some lunch, they got on the move again, and Kuria seemed excited to be returning to the human world again. He said that it was so interesting and diverse while Faerie was very uniform to the point that it got confusing. Fionn argued on that point, and the two got into a philosophical debate about how Fionn found Faerie very diverse while the _human_ world was the dull one.

“Finnegan,” Aslaug prodded. “You know what I’m asking for.”

He sighed. “I’d love to tell you, Aslaug, really, but I’m still working it out for myself.”

“How about you start from the beginning?”

Finnegan explained what had happened last night with Kráka and what Fionn had said for his opinion on the matter.

“So you love them both?”

“No. I mean…I don’t know.”

“Perhaps that’s why most people do this whole ‘dating’ thing before they get into fully-committed relationships. Or maybe the dating is the relationship part. Then what would you call the part _before_ you date where you just get to know someone? How do you really determine what makes a partner compatible? And what would you call that grace period? Or maybe it’s just called the ‘Grace Period.’ We should call it that.”

Finnegan’s mouth quirked up into a smile he couldn’t suppress. “Thanks, Aslaug.”

She poked his dimple, a sign that she was acknowledging his smile. “See? I know what I’m doing. Look, you and Kráka have been working together for a decade now. If you feel anything, I’d assume that you would know at least _something_ by now.”

“I…” He looked down grimly at the forest floor as they walked. “I’m not sure.” He placed his hand over his heart. “It’s weird. I never really thought about it before, but…maybe I’m just oblivious.”

“You seem to be a magnet for supernatural creatures. I worry about what that means for us. The _last_ thing we need is for a bunch of creatures all creating a harem with you. I don’t think I could tolerate that much social presence in my life.”

Finnegan flinched and Aslaug could _see_ the blush crawling up his neck even _without_ her enhanced senses. “I…you didn’t have to put it _that_ way.”

“There’s nothing wrong with a harem, Finnegan. Some people do it for a living. Granted most of the time it’s a single man with multiple women - which makes sense conceptually because a single man can have offspring with multiple women and effectively keep the population growing, especially in areas where successful births aren’t always a guarantee. Harems have a point, and in some cultures it’s a very effective and consensual process. Granted Fáfnir thinks that you’re just a descendant of an incubus.”

“Not to my knowledge…” he muttered, eyes widening in horror at the thought.

Aslaug laughed. “Well, if you _are_ , it might explain a couple things. Kráka and Fionn have both told me that there is something about you that we all can’t identify. I’m still concerned that we haven’t found an answer to that problem yet, but so far it doesn’t seem to be a problem. No other supernatural creatures seem to be flocking to you obsessively or anything, and it’s been ten years in Faerie itself. I’ve asked around, but none of the other faeries have answers, though they _do_ sense something about you. But don’t worry, _I’m_ not falling in love with you any time soon.”

“Well, thank the gods for that.”

“If you’re going to do this, just know that I support any decision, and either way I don’t think Kuria is going to be affected.”

The two of them looked over to Kuria skipping around as he talked to Fionn, who followed Kuria’s movements with practiced ease and little annoyance since he was used to it. Maintaining a conversation with a bouncing djinn was a skill that Fionn seemed to have never needed and yet has mastered.

“No, I’m not worried about Kuria,” Finnegan agreed. “I’m worried about Kráka. He can’t maintain his form for very long even though we’re still in Faerie. What happens when we get to the human world?”

“He’s already very strong, Finnegan. Don’t worry about him. The point is that Kuria has survived for a long time in the world of humans, he’s been _raised_ there. A djinn normally can’t maintain any regular form in the human realm, devoid of the natural energies that surround normal djinns. Normally, being raised in a magic-heavy realm means that djinns grow up thanks to the natural energies around them. Instead, Kuria was brought here when he was still an infant and didn’t just maintain a grown form but actually _grew up_ here. That’s impressive for a djinn. A normal djinn infant probably would’ve died from malnourishment, and even if they _did_ manage to survive, they’d be trapped in the form of a small child, unable to grow any further.”

“Wait, but if he came here as an infant…I thought Kráka had some kind of history or…”

“The story that we’ve managed to compile involves Kráka being banished from his realm and transformed into an infant in the hopes that it might contain or restrain him. For whatever reason, he became an exile. Consider Kuria an attempt to wipe clean Kráka and who he once was as a djinn. I’m not up to date on djinn customs, so I’m not sure if they left him alive rather than killing him because it’s taboo to kill their own kind or if they simply weren’t powerful enough to stop him. If Kráka’s gotten some proper training in Faerie, he might yet be able to learn how to handle Kráka’s form in the human world as well. Coming to Faerie unlocked Kráka, and now that the barriers between Kuria and Kráka have been broken, I think it opens the door to Kráka existing in the _human_ world, as well. Only time will tell.”

Finnegan looked up to the sky, the shimmering magic-filled forest of Faerie familiar to his eyes after all these years. “Yeah. Time will tell.”

By the time they reached the human realm, night had fallen again.

“Your eyes will need to adjust to the human world again,” Fionn advised. “It has been 10 some years for us, but for the mortal realm, we cannot determine our absence period without outside aid. We’ve aught a clue as to our circumstances.”

“So are we going home to the mansion?” Finnegan asked.

“I suppose,” Aslaug said. “Hopefully, the old man hasn’t conked out yet.”

Aslaug hadn’t even considered if she would ever see her uncle again. A decade was a long time already, and Aslaug’s uncle was old in terms of the average life expectancy these days. If Faerie ended up doubling that time, his chances of being alive when she returned were even lower. Aslaug’s worst-case-scenario was the tale of a single day in the real world translating to seven years in the Faerie realm, which she assumed could fluctuate the opposite way and do the exact opposite with a single day in Faerie being seven years in the human world. And if that happened for a period of ten years? Surely Faerie wouldn’t be so consistent for that long and wouldn’t be exact, but still…

Aslaug realized that her uncle probably expected her to take maybe a couple weeks on her journey, maybe a few months at worst, and a couple years would mean she’d contact him to assure him that she was okay. Her uncle knew a little about Faerie just like everyone else did in the human world and that time didn’t always work the same, but she hadn’t even considered the horrors of if she’d never see him again. She hadn’t thought about any goodbyes. She’d just left him abruptly, a woman on a mission to get back her family. She hadn’t even thought about how she’d leave a part of her family behind.

Though Fáfnir claimed not to care about the man who raised Aslaug, Aslaug herself was not so heartless that she didn’t want to stay with the old man for as long as possible.

Aslaug found herself walking faster than normal. Kuria didn’t notice, keeping her pace unconsciously with his regular ease and looking around the human world with fascination like a traveler returning to his hometown after many years away. Fionn took notice, it was clear, but he and Finnegan both seemed to understand her haste.

Aslaug was happy to see that the town and mansion didn’t seem to have changed drastically as though many years had passed. That was a good sign. The mansion was still standing, despite Aslaug’s fears that she’d find it long-since abandoned or in ruins. But that still left the possibility of something dumb and stupid like her uncle was evicted or locked up in prison framed for murder. Hey, Aslaug had a wild imagination sometimes, and she didn’t discount _anything_ that could happen in this world with a decade she had lost.

“Sebastian!” she called to the gates.

Sebastian was one of the head butlers and her close servant as a child. He handled a lot of her affairs while she was out doing other things such as going out into the town, during her trip to Svanhild, and her trip to rescue Finnegan and Fionn.

“ _Wow!_ Master’s home is a big human home!” Kuria exclaimed with his usual childish awe.

“It _is_ quite extensive,” Fionn agreed.

“Right, you’ve never been here, have you?” Aslaug realized.

“Nope!” Kuria responded happily.

“Then let me introduce you to my place.”

To Aslaug’s relief, Sebastian came to the gate to let her in. He didn’t look like he’d aged since Aslaug had last been there, but then again, her memories were beginning to fade away. What if she just wasn’t noticing any nuances?

Well, Sebastian didn’t seem like he was in any rush or in a panic. The guy wasn’t a stoic servant, but he’d had to deal with a lot when it came to being one of Aslaug’s caretakers. It was when he was calm that Aslaug knew something was wrong, but he seemed casual and happy enough greeting them and instructing the other servants to accommodate their return.

Explaining Kuria was a bit of a process, but Sebastian just nodded and said that he understood and handled things. Kuria would be Aslaug’s personal servant, but that didn’t change her dynamic much with everyone else - they didn’t have to call her ‘Master’ above anything else, such as calling her ‘My lady,’ which was more common.

Life was peaceful after that, though they still continued their training and helping Kuria learn to cast magic in the hopes that Kráka might be able to be summoned again. Kuria didn’t know much about Kráka, but they _did_ appear to share memories unconsciously. Kuria would say things without thinking, such as complimenting Finnegan and Fionn or making remarks about magics that were beyond any of them and probably knowledge that shouldn’t exist in the human world at all.

Aslaug took up hunting as a hobby in order to get in her fighting experience and not get rusty. Kuria always came with her because the djinn didn’t want to leave her side and honestly Aslaug didn’t mind. There was also the fact that Fionn and Finnegan joined in to keep up their strength and training as well.

“Hey, Lau, you’ve got mail!” Finnegan called.

“What is it?”

“Letter. Looks like it’s pretty fancy too.”

He handed her a message that she took. It was a letter, meaning that no peasant could’ve given it to her since only the upper class knew how to read and write properly. Not to mention that the handwriting with her name on the front of the letter was written in beautiful cursive. It was clearly made by someone well-written, maybe even royalty. As Aslaug flipped over the letter and tried to remember where she’d seen the crest that was stamped on the back with hot wax - another method that reassured her that there had to be royalty involved in the sender’s background. It was a kingdom’s crest, one that she _knew_ was familiar.

Aslaug carefully broke the seal, feeling that the letter was a valuable thing to preserve and not desecrate, and when she pulled out the letter, she found that it held the same beautiful hand script that was on the outside.

‘ _Dearest Aslaug,_

_I do hope this letter reaches you in good health. I hoped to speak to you regarding the incident during our last encounter, but I learned that urgent matters demanded your attention involving your husband’s safety. I do hope he is in good health as well, and if not, I send you my regards and wish you good fortune that you might recover with minimal vexation. I exchanged letters with your uncle on the progress of your journey, and when I learned that you had returned, I was over-joyous and hoped to gain word from you. Do visit when you are able. I quite enjoy your company._

_If it interests you, tournament season has begun here in the kingdom, a silly sport held where the best warriors around our kingdom gather to brawl in a frankly unsightly manner in order to find who among them is the strongest. I must oversee the tournament with my grandfather, but the experience would be far less unpleasant should I have your company. Oh, but of course you are welcome to bring any of your companions - your uncle is invited as well. I can’t promise it will be anything more than a boring scuffle between the men who claim they are so strong in this world, but perhaps it will be enjoyable should we find time to catch up on our previous mishaps._

_I hope to hear your reply soon._

 _-Yours truly, Svanhild_ ’

“Her handwriting is so pretty,” Aslaug muttered. “Meanwhile _my_ handwriting looks like a toddler learning to hold a stick and drawing in the mud.”

“Oh, don’t be so harsh on yourself,” Finnegan said. “Your handwriting’s _fine_.”

“A matter of opinion.”

He hummed skeptically, unconvinced. “Anyway, I’m assuming you know who it’s from?”

“Svanhild.”

“Your sister?”

Aslaug nodded. She’d told her story about visiting Svanhild during their time together in Faerie. “She’s inviting us to visit. There’s also a tournament going on that we’d have to tolerate. Bunch of muscle-heads walking around asserting their dominance.”

“We should go. Might as well. I’d like to meet your sister.”

“She’s nothing like me, take my word for it.”

“Well, if your handwriting concern is anything to go by, I’m sure she’s not that bad even if she _is_ different.”

“Wishful thinking, Finnegan. I admire your optimism sometimes, but it gets exhausting.”

“A matter of opinion,” he replied with a sideways smirk.

“Come on. Let’s go tell the boys.”

“Are we participating in a tournament, Master?!” Kuria asked enthusiastically.

“Not participating directly,” Aslaug admitted. “Though that _does_ sound fun, I’d think we’d crush the competition and sooner be disqualified for cheating. Having supernaturals and supernatural powers on our side will stigmatize us greatly. If we’re not branded enemies that should be killed on sight, there’d still be rebellions and probably tricks and traps and such. Best not to draw attention to ourselves.”

“Agreed,” Fionn said.

“We still get to watch from a pretty neat perch,” Finnegan said. “Lau’s sister is a princess. Royalty seems to be a common theme with your acquaintances.”

“I only know _two_ royals,” Aslaug argued. “No offense, but _you’re_ just a noble.”

“Still, you have friends in high places. And with a powerful djinn by your side too?”

“The universe is an avid fan of coincidences. Or perhaps this _is_ all orchestrated. In which case, the higher powers might be planning something for us, and giving us the means to do our tasks when the time comes. All of us are unique fighters, but we share many common threads among us. To make a proper team, we need to be prepared for any situation. Perhaps more traveling and helping out will do us well.”

“Then I suppose the journey is set,” Fionn said.

“Yay!” Kuria cheered. “When shall we depart, Master?”

“Soon, I suppose. I guess I should send a note to Svan telling her that we’re coming. Dropping in on her suddenly doesn’t seem very nice.”


	11. To the Kingdom of Gjúki

The journey on the road was entertaining as ever. They stopped by every town they could and went to the local tipsters with some information on hunts they could undertake. As they got closer to the King Gjúki’s lands, the word of the tournament was widespread, and Kuria seemed to be ever excited.

“Djinns often enjoy tournaments for sport,” Kuria explained. “I remember the rousing battles I would participate in, a champion of my people.”

“Kráka is no doubt a skilled warrior,” Fionn agreed. “His fighting technique is erratic and calculated, precise and unpredictable. He clearly has much experience with intelligent fighters and basic instinctual opponents as well. It would not surprise me if he were a tournament champion in his realm.”

“A champion…” Kuria muttered, tapping his temple. “Kráka is a champion, yes.”

“Well, we don’t need any champions,” Aslaug said. “For now, we’re just travelers, helping out whenever we see there’s trouble.”

“I like the sound of that,” Finnegan said.

Gjúki’s kingdom was just as Aslaug had remembered it. Another sign that she hadn’t lost a lot of time in Faerie. According to her uncle, she had been gone only a couple fortnights, which she was relieved about, but she still had a bit of lag in her mind from being in Faerie so long.

“Rice balls!” Kuria exclaimed. “Grandpa always made rice balls. They were delicious. Grandpa taught me how to cook rice balls.”

“They seem to be imported straight from Japan,” Fionn said. “King Gjúki does seem to value connections with other places.”

“Benefits of having a bunch of allies means that all parties get some perks,” Aslaug agreed. “Are these rice balls as good as the ones your grandpa made, Kuria?”

“Dey’re slightwee diffewent,” he admitted with a mouthful of rice.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full of food, please.”

“Ess Wasta!” Kuria swallowed. “Grandpa said that too…”

“Anyway, the answer?”

“Ah, yes. They’re slightly different, but still good. Can we buy some, Master?”

“Sure, let’s get a few bundles for our stay here. Let’s look around, see if we have any other special requests while we’re here. I do so enjoy traveling to new places.”

“Human food is enjoyable, I admit,” Fionn said.

“I missed human food,” Finnegan admitted. “Not that I wasn’t appreciative that I had some fey food I could eat without worrying about eternally serving some faerie or getting stuck in Faerie forever, but I miss some good old-fashion human food.”

“Especially exotic stuff,” Aslaug said. “Fancy stuff from home made by the servants is great and all, but I’ve always wanted to do some traveling and see what’s out there. Unfortunately, I’ve been tethered to my uncle and his place for all my life. Until I went to Faerie, of course. And before that I came to this kingdom only once and didn’t really sight-see.”

“Well now we have the chance to explore,” Finnegan said. “We should do this more often, see the whole world!”

“I might just enjoy that prospect.”

Aslaug led them to the palace where she had last visited Svanhild. She wasn’t sure if they should go in the front door or not. They _were_ invited by Svanhild, and Aslaug had kept the letter safely on her during their travels in case proof was needed. At the same time, she hated being an official guest. It’d mean she was obligated to stay here, that she needed to interact with the servants and the people who didn’t know her and her condition. And then there were her guests, only one of which could’ve _possibly_ been called human, and if Fionn and Kuria were found out, there was no telling what would happen to them. And Aslaug herself, as well. There could be little reaction, or there could be a full-out hunt for them, something that wouldn’t end well for their pursuers.

“Might as well be kind to them,” Aslaug muttered.

‘ _I hate being kind,_ ’ Fáfnir grumbled.

Aslaug led her party around the palace and to a safe place where they could scale the walls safely without being detected. Aslaug kept track of the soldiers doing their rounds before leading her group into the gardens where the guards were less frequent. All of them were more than capable of scaling the wall without help and sneaking around wasn’t hard. Much easier than sneaking into the faerie palace.

“I can’t tell if we should be worried about such lackluster security,” Finnegan said. “I’ve been spoiled by fey protection.”

“Well, ever since we first broke in, they had incentive to up their game - and for faeries they take that very seriously,” Aslaug said.

“Indeed. Failing duties to one’s king or queen is a mark of shame comparable to no other,” Fionn said.

“The faerie guards train night and day to become stronger and more alert,” Kuria said. “I tried training with them, and they knocked me on my butt!”

“I think that’s an understatement of what they did,” Finnegan noted.

“Agreed, but they really couldn’t do much damage to him in the long run with Kráka there to come to his aid if need be,” Aslaug said. “Anyway, now we just need to find Svanhild.”

“What exactly is the plan to find her, Aslaug?” Fionn asked. “Should we be successful, her intentions within her letter display the desire to commute with you publicly.”

Aslaug sighed. “And there’s also what happened with Fáfnir last time. I wonder what she remembers from back then.”

“We can tamper with her memories if we need to, right?” Finnegan asked. “Or at least Kuria can.”

“Yes Master!” Kuria agreed.

“He is not the only one,” Fionn pointed out.

“Not until we know what she knows,” Aslaug said. “Let’s not get too hasty.”

Finding Vaan wasn’t hard. Just like Aslaug remembered, Vaan still came out into the gardens on her routine.

When Aslaug introduced her friends, she wasn’t really sure how to introduce Fionn. They hadn’t been using the excuse of him being a servant ever since they’d returned from Faerie, and he’d been treated as a guest without any of them thinking much of it. Since Fionn had already been a prince for the last 10 years, they didn’t even realize that they’d need to break that habit and even consider making him a servant again to keep his cover in the human world. The servants hadn’t said anything about it - maybe because they just didn’t want to ask questions. In their minds, it had only been a couple months since he and Fionn had been taken by supernatural causes, so when Aslaug returned with a new servant, with her, Finnegan, and Fionn all changed with new faerie clothes and many more years on them, they probably didn’t really know what to ask. And honestly, Aslaug had grown up with enough oddities and they’d learned to live with it.

“I can sense great power within your comrades,” Vaan said.

Aslaug chuckled. “I suppose I should expect that from you. Wanna take some guesses on how powerful everyone is?”

“Hey, I wasn’t aware I would be dragged into a game of ‘Who’s the strongest?’” Finnegan protested.

“I don’t mind,” Kuria said.

“You don’t mind _anything_.”

“The rankings were quite clear from the beginning, Finnegan,” Fionn said.

“What’s _that_ mean?”

“I would say that there are things that I don’t know about you,” Vaan admitted. “I can’t really judge who’s the most powerful since you’ve all got power hidden within.”

“Smart lady!” Kuria exclaimed.

“I’m guessing a couple of you aren’t human though.”

“ _Very_ smart lady.”

“Kuria is a djinn,” Aslaug explained. “Non-binary, we call him ‘he/him.’ Long story short, he’s strong enough to exist in this world as strong as he is, but he has some memory problems and doesn’t really have much will of his own without a master.”

Vaan’s eyes lit up at the mystery before her. “Interesting! I’ve read about djinns. They have mystic powers to make deals by any means necessary. Some call them demons, some call them deities.”

“You’re not wrong,” Kuria said.

“And you.” Vaan looked at Fionn. “I smell a power of nature within you, but also a fire deep within. I can’t tell if you beget life or death or both.”

“Yes.”

“And as for you…” She looked to Finnegan. “Well you look dull as a human.”

Finnegan frowned. “Gee, thanks.”

“It’s something not on the outside that I sense from you. Hidden too deep for me to decipher.”

“Consider it lucky that you’re not an obvious target, Finnegan,” Aslaug said. “All of us are prone to ambush when our notoriety is used against us. But you can take an enemy by surprise. That’s a valuable asset, Finn. Don’t take it for granted.”

He sighed and crossed his arms. “Yeah, yeah.”

“But Aslaug, you are the most interesting of them all, aren’t you?” Vaan said.

“I don’t preach my talent,” Aslaug said.

“No, you really don’t. There was always something interesting about you, Aslaug, but you hide it very well. I don’t know the depths of your ability, but I _do_ know there’s something about you that’s piqued my interest. I _will_ figure you out one day.”

“I welcome you to try.”

Vaan smiled. “Well, now that you’re all here, have you done much touring of the city?”

“We did some exploring in the marketplace,” Finnegan said.

“Oh, there’s much more to see, and I can show you one of my favorite places in my father’s kingdom. You mind if I give you a tour?”

“I wouldn’t mind that, no,” Aslaug said. “If the rest of you are up for it.”

“If Master goes, I go,” Kuria said with a smile.

“I don’t really mind,” Finnegan said. “Fionn?”

He shrugged. “I’m not fond of being left to my own devices in a foreign land.”

“Good answer. So, shall we go?”


	12. Vaan's  Sanctuary

Vaan’s favorite place in her kingdom didn’t surprise Aslaug. The large fields where she normally rode horses, a place where she was free and surrounded by nature. Aslaug could understand why she liked it there. The forest in the distance beyond the field was between the palace and the mountains, pure nature, purely isolated with harsh terrain protecting the kingdom from one side. A journey across the mountains would hardly be deadly (they could hardly be called mountains, more like rolling hills), but then the forests held many dangers as well and a large wall that separated the fields from the forest was strong enough to keep out wild creatures as well as invading armies that might’ve made it that far.

“Are you sure it’s okay for you to go beyond the wall?” Aslaug asked.

“Oh, I’ll be fine so long as I have you lot,” Vaan said, not hesitating to begin climbing the wall.

“This lady’s sure something,” Finnegan muttered. “Only your genes could be so crazy.”

All of them had taken an oath to hide Aslaug’s relationship to Vaan at Aslaug’s request. Kuria was the only one who didn’t seem reluctant to do as she asked or questioned Aslaug’s reasoning.

“She’s far more competent than one of her status would be expected,” Fionn admitted.

“She has charmed Master,” Kuria said.

“What are you lolls waiting for?!” Vaan called from the top of the tall wall.

She’d climbed it fast - and without many handholds, clearly from experience. Aslaug had seen the callouses on her hands, hands that could weave threads and cast magic but hands that tended to the hard labor of growing a garden and who knew how to wrestle a wild animal and skin it for all its worth. Aslaug could appreciate a girl like that, delicate and deadly. It frightened her, the power of alchemy that Vaan’s grandmother used to ruin Aslaug’s life, but in hindsight that fear was misplaced. She was more powerful than a witch, but beyond that, Vaan showed her that there wasn’t anything wrong with a witch’s power. Even if some of the things that they did were unsavory. _Most_ things Aslaug did were unsavory, and she wasn’t a hypocrite.

“Let’s not fall behind then,” Aslaug said.

She activated a small thrust and launched herself up with her wind power. She was very proud of mastering wind magic. Fionn launched himself up with a small burst of fire and Finnegan threw out his hand, a wire extending from his wrist, catching into the stone, and pulling him up. Under his traveling cloak, he hid his left arm which had a crystal green bracer around his wrist and forearm, and as he landed at the top of the wall, the wire that had emerged was revealed to have originated at the crystal accessory and retracted from whence it came. Kuria leapt up to a perch beside the others in a single bound, almost levitating as he gently reached the peak of his jump right at the top of the wall, having made a perfect, calculated jump without needing to think about it.

“Interesting,” Vaan said.

Aslaug could see the curiosity and hypothesizing in her eyes. She was a scientist to the core, and Aslaug couldn’t say she didn’t find a thrill of fear when she thought of the lurking madness that might be descending from Vaan’s genes.

“Well, is someone gonna give me a ride down?” Vaan asked. “I’d climb down myself, but it seems you’d all be a faster ride.”

“No,” Fionn said flatly. “Kuria, with me.”

He grabbed Kuria’s wrist and tugged the djinn after him as he dived off the stone wall.

“ _Someone’s_ in a mood,” Finnegan muttered, diving off after them.

“Guess that leaves you and me,” Vaan said.

Aslaug scowled down at Fionn. Just what was he playing at?

Aslaug scooped Vaan up into her arms bridal-style and then jumped.

“Hey, whoa-!” Aslaug landed a moment later, protecting the both of them from any damage from the long drop. “Whoo. That was…wow.”

Aslaug felt a small moment of pride at making Vaan at a loss for words. She let the princess down, realizing for a moment how she enjoyed having a princess in her arms. She wondered if it was a lingering dragon thing, maybe the reasons dragons wanted to keep princesses locked up like prizes or something.

“Thanks,” Vaan said.

“You wanted a lift, princess,” Aslaug said. “If ever you want to fly, I’ve learned that too. Perhaps I might give you another ride.”

Vaan smiled. “I’ll hold you to that, Lau.”

Aslaug nodded, hurrying to join the others who were at the tree line waiting.

“Where are we going?” Fionn asked. “This forest is heavy with magic energies. There is no doubt a portal to Faerie here.”

“Oh yes, this place is great for finding enchanted herbs and hiding some infinite mysteries,” Vaan said. “But there’s somewhere in particular that I’m aiming for.”

Svanhild took the lead as they trekked through the treacherous jungle. Despite the wildlife that threatened them, she had come well equipped to handle herself, which Aslaug was impressed by, but it was hardly unexpected. Vaan had definitely been here before many times and was privy to the risks that came with venturing forth. Why would she be leading if she didn't have much prior experience?

“Oh. And what is _this_ place?”

Vaan led them past a wall of greenery hiding a tunnel in a large wall of rock. They could’ve easily gone over or around, but it would require a lot of destruction. It was a heavily fortified area in terms of both camouflage and the heavy scent of magic in the air that warded off regular animals as well as any unwanted guests. Aslaug and her party could feel the pulsing energy pushing against their mental barriers. It was borderline migraine material just from sensing it, since all of them were sensitive to magic to some degree. The plants in Faerie fluctuated when it came to whether they were helpful or harmful, but these plants were born and made to be harmful to any creatures that came this way.

“I have them scattered across the forest,” Vaan explained. “It keeps people off my trail.”

“She might even be better with plants than _you_ , Fionn,” Finnegan said.

“Perish the thought,” Fionn grumbled. “These plants are heavy warding, but one crack in their defenses will mean certain doom.”

“Anything strong enough to crack through the defenses of the plants is a bigger threat than the camouflage could ever protect against,” Vaan said. “Anyway, I’ve ordered them to let you through. If I hadn’t, you’d all have been stopped long before you reached this place.”

“Untrue, but I’ll let you live in your fantasy world,” Aslaug muttered.

“Agreed,” Fionn muttered.

“Lady Svanhild is very benevolent!” Kuria said.

“Aw, thanks,” Vaan said. “I like you, sweetheart. What was your name again?”

“Call me Kuria, my lady.”

“Where’d you pick up such an adorable bean, Aslaug?”

“He fell out of the sky,” Aslaug replied honestly.

“Really? _That_ sounds like a story.”

“Not really. I was walking through the forest on my way to faerie when he fell out of the sky screaming ‘Master!’”

“It’s true!” Kuria exclaimed.

“Hardly a riveting tale, but so base a meeting feels appropriate for so base a creature,” Fionn said.

“Thank you, Lord Fionn.”

“Hey, Kuria’s a good friend,” Finnegan said. “You shouldn’t insult him when he’s unable to understand.”

“He does not feel animosity towards me for banter that you might call insulting, Finnegan,” Fionn said. “You should be well acquainted with Kuria’s being. He does not feel insult, he does not feel much of anything.”

“That doesn’t mean you should take advantage of his ignorance that isn’t his fault.”

“I do not mind, Finnegan-san,” Kuria said lightly. “I know you have spent much time with Kráka, but I am not Kráka. Your insult is an honor, for I am pleased to simply be important enough to warrant your animosity.”

“Kuria…you shouldn’t be afraid to tell us if you want something or if you’re uncomfortable.”

“I have no desires of my own, Finnegan-san. I call you Finnegan-san because you refuse to be called a lord. I call Master ‘Master’ because he is my master. I refer to Lord Fionn as a lord because he is a lord. His insult is the greatest kindness, for he does not offer insult to those he does not care for. To give me insult is his method of telling me that I matter enough to be worthy of his true self. He need not hide behind a mask of kindness or respect, for I will not push him away even should he put his greatest efforts into warding me off. That is a true sign of love, Finnegan. I know this because he often opposes you with such childish banter out of love and respect. I have seen it myself and through Kráka, a love that transcends any other love he will express to even his family. Do not squander that love, Finnegan, and do not underestimate it.”

Kuria ran forward to catch up to Vaan and Aslaug, while Fionn slowed his pace as Finnegan nearly crawled to a stop as he processed Kuria’s words.

“Finnegan,” Fionn prodded.

Finn took a moment to gather his thoughts, and needed a couple tries before he managed to get his words out. “Kuria…he…I think…”

Fionn smiled. “It seems you fall in love with those who see the world from a different perspective than your own. Kuria and I are creatures you can learn of but never truly understand, and yet it intrigues you and I alike what you might learn as we become further acquainted with each other’s worlds. Do you believe you might let Kuria join us?”

“I…I think I might,” he admitted. “Maybe. If you’re fine with it, of course. And he is too.”

“I believe we have long since been ready,” Fionn said. “We only await your blessing. You are human. You have customs, laws, beliefs that restrict you whether you mean for them to or not.”

“I know. I guess…I don’t know. It just feels like someone’s always watching me and judging me - judging _us_ , even when we’re alone.”

“It is nothing to be ashamed of. Fear such as that is what keeps you alive, keeps you vigilant when you feel you are caught doing wrong and must avoid the consequences.”

“Yeah, well, being judged by other people silently doesn’t feel as bad as a punishment for…I don’t know, robbing a palace treasure hold.”

“Quite the contrary; your peers’ opinion of you reflects your environment and the dangers of a hostile community will lead to your ruin. Ever since the dawn of humanity you have needed to rely on each other when you could rely on no one and nothing else.”

“I really _do_ fall for philosophical people, don’t I?”

“Intelligence is a virtue.”

Finnegan sighed. “We’ll work it out when we get some alone time, all right? For now, let’s just stay with the others.”

The two of them quickened their pace, but luckily Aslaug and Vaan seemed preoccupied with each other and Kuria was following behind, easily voiding himself from the conversation but giving helpful comments when he could. Kuria barely flinched when Finnegan and Fionn rejoined them, while Aslaug and Vaan hardly noticed their absence or their return.

“I’m just saying, it’s not practical,” Aslaug said.

“How is it impractical?” Vaan asked.

“The whole point of a torch is to light the way and allow your surroundings to be seen. But it draws attention to you if you’re in a dangerous situation. Why would I need a torch when I can bring a Lumen?”

“Because not everyone has Lumen Crystals to make Lumens, Lau.”

“Well they’re not hard to get.”

“Not hard if you’re a dragon.”

“Exactly!”

Vaan rolled her eyes. “I’m still getting used to the idea of the whole dragon thing.”

“And yet it’s not the most fantastical thing you’ve ever heard of.”

“Must say a lot about me. Anyway, we’re here.”

Vaan pushed past a curtain of greenery, allowing them through to a large open area surrounded by towering rock walls. It was like a haven, a sanctuary. There was a small stream running through the area from small tunnels, plenty of greenery and many hiding spots if ever there was an invasion and they needed to take cover.

‘ _Always ready for danger, I see._ ’

‘ **_Oh, admit it, you’re bored, Fáfnir._ **’

‘ _Well I didn’t_ need _to actually say it, did I?_ ’

Vaan rubbed her hands together. “And _this_ is the best part.”

She knelt down and pressed her hands into the grass, charged with energy, and sent a pulse through the area through the magically energized grass. Vaan was not a supernatural, but her artificial skills with alchemy and some witch magic was impressive indeed. A rumble and a hum overtook the area before a large circular tower rose out of the ground. It was a classic stone tower, and Aslaug couldn’t help but wonder if it was like the one that she grew up in with her mother before she was sent away with her uncle.

“Come on!”

Vaan quickly led them to the base of the tower and pressed in one of the bricks to open a door. They went up a spiral staircase before they were let out into a pretty neat house. It had clear evidence of a single resident - paintings both on canvases and the walls, books scattered about, blankets, throw pillows, only things that royalty could have, really. The wood making up the walls and floor was so perfect that only someone royal could ever hope to get it installed _anywhere_ , and there were fancy dishes that appeared to have been made from ceramics made in the east and silks that were no doubt made somewhere else. Aslaug could even smell spices that had to have come from farther south.

“This is my secret getaway home,” Vaan announced.

“It’s so pretty!” Kuria exclaimed.

“Lumen Lilies,” Fionn noted. “Illuminating the entire residence at their master’s command.”

Aslaug waved her hand and the lights in the whole living area went out, leaving only the light from the sun coming from the windows.

“Lau!” Vaan scolded.

Aslaug giggled. “Not above any of us, of course.”

“Okay, you’ve proven your point, now stop messing with my plants.”

‘ _You’re no fun,_ ’ Fáfnir muttered.

They activated the Lumen Lilies again and Vaan proceeded to show them around her sanctuary.

“The wards,” Fionn announced.

“Hm?”

“Kuria find the hostiles and deal with them appropriately,” Aslaug ordered.

“Yes Master.”

He dropped the books that Vaan had given him to hold and ran to the window, diving out without a second thought.

“Someone’s intruding on my lands?” Vaan muttered. “Criminy, why now of all times?”

“I don’t know what you just said, but let’s follow him and see who’s here,” Finnegan said, running to the window and summoning his cable to lower himself down.

“Agreed,” Fionn said. “Aslaug, you must give Kuria orders should our intruders not have hostile intentions.”

He rushed to the window and dived out, summoning the winds to fly off.

“Why do you all insist on making such dramatic exits?” Vaan sighed.

“You wanna take the stairs?” Aslaug challenged.

“Hell no. Let me on, sister.”

Aslaug tried to ignore the comment and hefted Vaan into her arms again, launching out the window and taking flight. She followed after Fionn who was following Finnegan who was running after Kuria, and all of them hurried through the entrance that Vaan had taken them through before. Fionn and Aslaug both landed and ran alongside Finnegan, but Aslaug didn’t drop Vaan since she figured it’d be a waste of time to let her run on her own.

By the time they exited the other end of the tunnel, Kuria was already in action, facing off against a large deal of enemies.

“That shouldn’t be _possible_ ,” Vaan exclaimed. “They can’t have gotten this close with all my wardings and protections!”

“Forgive my presumptions, Lady Svanhild, but it appears that these creatures are beyond your power,” Fionn said. “Your protections are indeed strong, but these intruders…”

“I sense it too,” Finnegan said. “Something just terribly…wrong.”

“Should you be letting your servant handle this alone?” Vaan urged.

“Kuria is actually the best equipped to handle this situation,” Aslaug said. “The enemy is not very well known, but I can sense Kuria’s power is actually working very well adapting to this new force.”

“Probably because of his orders,” Finnegan suggested.

“No. It seems innate, as though Kuria could take this on all on his own anyway.”

Kuria had gained the attention of all the intruders, donning black and white traveling cloaks and respective colors for their outfits and weapons beneath. Kuria avoided getting stabbed by a spear, grabbed said weapon and snapped it with his hare hands, and then spun to give a roundhouse kick to his attackers. He punched and kicked with elegance and grace that almost seemed predetermined, as though the entire fight had been carefully choreographed beforehand. Kuria, bubbly and kind-hearted as he was, could be a ruthless fighter if Aslaug gave him the command, and that was how he now handled this situation.

Kuria had to make a sacrificial move by missing a single beat and got sliced in the cheek, but he didn’t stop and continued his assault against his overwhelming odds without concern. He barely gave a single acknowledging glance at his wound before continuing his stone-face assault. Aslaug always loved it when she had the chance to let Kuria loose, because such an innocent, loving little man could become a ruthless and deadly efficient fighter when he had his orders. Soft pink eyes held a glare that could pierce armor, and a single punch from Kuria was always coordinated and deliberate and always disabled his opponents. It made it all the more riveting when he had a large number of enemies to wail on, because Kuria could kick the collective asses of dozens of opponents and Aslaug got to enjoy the show.

Based on how Finnegan and Fionn were admiring Kuria’s handiwork (the former more in awe and the latter with a slightly sadistic gleam in his eyes), Aslaug knew she wasn’t the only one enjoying the show.

“The weapons!” Aslaug exclaimed. “ _That’s_ what it is!”

“What?” Vaan said.

Kuria grabbed a weapon off of one of his fallen targets and charged it with energy before throwing it into the crowd. It exploded with a flash of light that seemed to energize the air itself with a charge of electricity. He grabbed another two weapons in either hand, one black and one white, and the troops began to back away in trepidation. Kuria activated them both and began his assault.

“The weapons are charged with energy similar to that of a djinn’s,” Aslaug explained. “It seems that these guys didn’t come in knowing what they were fighting.”

“Don’t _any_ of you want to help?” Vaan asked.

“Never underestimate the power of a djinn. They have access to the powers of light, darkness, and humanity. They are the origins of Christianity, in essence, or at least a contributing factor of it involving angels and demons - inherent good or evil, and the fallibility of humans to follow either path. No, they aren’t as strong as pure angels or demons on their own, but they have the diversity to wield the power of any of the three types, even simultaneously. Kuria is deadly because he has grown up in the human world and therefore his human characteristics, the most dangerous part of him, have been nurtured.

“Djinns normally live in another dimension or universe - whatever you wish to call it - where they live relatively human-like lives, just with a bit of supernatural added in. They have kings and queens, nobles and common-folk, love and loss. They don’t feel as fiercely as humans, but they do feel. They’re just far more casual and numb to their feelings when put in comparison to a human. Djinns are often free to choose whether or not they wish to accept the light or the darkness within them and to what extent; they’re not forced to make any choice, it’s just a natural balance that develops over the course of their lives and they aren’t judged for it. Some turn to angels because they reject the dark power within them. Without the balance of light and dark, the human part of them can be burnt away and they become full celestial beings. On the flip side, if they choose to reject the light within them and choose the darkness, they become the equivalent of demons. Djinns are where demons originated, really, with their power to fulfill a desire so long as an official, magically binding deal is made. A djinn is not frowned upon for choosing the light versus the darkness; morals, to them, are not connected to light and darkness. Choosing the light or the darkness only means they have chosen to be more erratic and rebellious or very strict in manner and law-abiding. To them, it does not mean that they have fallen from grace nor have they risen to ethereal heights. It is just natural.

“Djinns do not have to become angels or demons, and they can simply live with the diverse ranges of good and evil similar to how humans have different ranges of good and evil within them. They live in societies similar to humans but with a lower average of strife because they are more balanced and contained by their supernatural parts. They are some of the most diverse creatures in creation that we know of, but at the same time, they have no diversity at all. If you’d seen a grouping of ten djinn, you might be surprised to find that they all share a similar appearance. Though their hair color, skin color, their accessories, etc. can differ, they share identical facial features and basic body builds. Were we to encounter another djinn, it is likely they would have the same face as Kuria even if they differed in their characteristics like a slightly different personality and preferences. Of course, with the powers of light and darkness balanced out so perfectly that humanity can exist within them, this realm doesn’t have the power to sustain them properly. Only the strongest djinn can exist in this reality and maintain their regular form. Nobles could maybe do it, royalty definitely, but then royalty vary on whether they can use their supernatural powers even in this realm or whether they must direct all their efforts to maintaining their physical forms.

“Kuria has the ability to harness the powers of light and darkness - called ‘ _Heaven_ ’ and ‘ _Hell_ ’ by the Christian religion. Watch. Kuria can use and activate the weapons of angels and demons, but he cannot wield them as long-term combat weapons. That’s why he is grabbing them, activating them, and then throwing them as projectiles; he only needs to sustain his weapons for the length of the throw rather than an entire battle sequence. It allows him to keep his distance and make sure that his enemies are all where he can see them. Kuria, whether he realizes it or not, is using his human part at all times. The will to do anything comes from humanity. Angels rarely interfere with humanity because they simply have no reason to care - they cannot sympathize anymore. Demons _do_ interfere with humanity, but that’s just because they enjoy manipulating creatures beneath them and using their predictable reactions, desires, and desperations as a bit of a case study.

“Kuria is dangerous because he has been raised in the human world. He’s had to work harder than any djinn normally would to develop his abilities, and he doesn’t understand who or what he is because he is not like other humans. Raised by a human he calls ‘Grandfather,’ we can only speculate Kuria’s understanding of humanity and of himself. For now, he has and does serve Fáfnir, and I highly doubt that he would ever betray me. Djinns are loyal creatures simply because they don’t have as much diversity as humans - similar to you faeries, actually. It is ingrained into his bones that he must uphold his oaths no matter his personal feelings, but he doesn’t have much drive to resist either way because he doesn’t really have any references for something else that he’d want to do. But whatever he does, he does with all his heart. Again, like you faeries, djinns are slightly dramatic by comparison to humans.”

“Faeries and djinns are likely related,” Fionn said. “Of course, most magical elements in this world come from similar sources.”

“So…what are these guys doing here?” Vaan asked.

“That _is_ the question, isn’t it?” Aslaug said with a grin.

Kuria kicked down a final opponent, pursuing any of them who chose to attempt to flee and outpacing them with ease, using the forest to his advantage since he could jump across the trees with little trouble. He launched himself forward and punched down one last fleeing intruder before he finally finished. Kuria grabbed the fallen people and dragged them all into a large pile, like some kind of body farm, and he removed a cloak of one in white and one in black.

“Master?”

Aslaug set Vaan down, realizing she was still holding the princess in her arms, and then went to kneel in front of Kuria’s victims.

“Interesting,” Aslaug said. “Why would beings of the _Christian_ religion be _here_ of all places?”

“I’ve heard of Christianity and their believers being widespread,” Vaan said.

“The human followers, yes. To each their own when it comes to who humans choose to believe in, but these creatures are actually supernatural. Most of the Christian religion was born out of djinn-kind, so that’s why Kuria is such an effective fighter against these two opposing forces working together. We should head back to your kingdom and see if there are any reports either from your kingdom or any neighboring ones that are requesting help. News of these guys should be going around.”

Fionn knelt beside Aslaug and put his hand on the forehead of one of the fallen attackers. “These men would be equivalent to Nephilim and warlocks, no?”

“Since we don’t have many ways to describe them, yes. They’ve been imbued with the powers of so-called angels and demons - the creatures that are born mostly from djinns. But these lands aren’t ruled by the Christian religion. Our Norse gods should be protecting us. I worry what this means for the future of the balance of power. Who knows when or how things will go down? But we should be taking precautions, either way.”

“Agreed,” Fionn said. “Why did you come here…?” He closed his eyes and tried to gleam into the person beneath him. “I need more time to truly dissect his mind, though I have my suspicions that Kuria’s connection is not to be taken lightly.”

“They probably came here for him specifically?” Finnegan asked.

“Perhaps. Let us return to the kingdom and deliberate.”

“Aw, but we were just getting to the fun stuff,” Vaan complained.

“What should we do with the bodies?” Finnegan asked.

“How many are left alive?” Aslaug asked.

“All of them, Master,” Kuria said.

“How many are there in total?”

“50, Master.”

“A small platoon then. Can your dungeon hold them for interrogation?” Aslaug asked, glancing at Vaan.

“Sure,” Vaan shrugged. “If you can transport them all there and keep them unconscious long enough for them all to be detained.”

“Fine. Everyone, hold on.”

Aslaug raised her hands and lifted all of them, allies and enemies alike, before floating them up and over the forest and then heading towards Vaan’s palace.

Vaan managed to make sure that there were no questions asked when it came to her bringing in a bunch of intruders that attempted to attack her while she was out. Aslaug and the others were given little more than a formal apology for the trouble that was brought upon them - as though these people were coming for _Vaan_ rather than the suspected Kuria.

“I can’t say that I like this,” Aslaug said.

“Which part?” Vaan asked.

“These people, these _creatures_ , are human, but their biology itself has been altered.”

“Yes, and it seems their minds have been tampered with as well, if even Kuria and Fionn’s magical interrogations are failing.”

“Not failing by any fault of theirs, of course. But true, these people are…odd. I worry about what their appearance means for us.”

“Kuria managed to take them down,” Vaan pointed out.

“Kuria’s special. Like we said, he’s a djinn. I fear the trouble others might encounter should more of these troops attack with the goals of conquering. I think these guys were sent after Kuria because they sensed his connection to them. Whether he was friend or foe, I’m not sure if they knew. But they came one way or another, and here we are. Kuria’s probably just declared war on them, and I’m not sure if that means that the rest of us are automatically roped into this as well.”

“I trust you’ll keep us safe,” Vaan said.

“You should be careful who you trust,” Aslaug warned.

Vaan shrugged. “I know. But I trust you.”

“You really shouldn’t.”

“How nice of you to warn me. Proves even more that I should trust you. If nothing else, I wanna hear your story, see where you go in the future. You’re a big mystery, Aslaug, even though you wear your heart on your sleeve.”

“What does that even mean?”

She shrugged vaguely - a habit of hers that Aslaug couldn’t tell if she was irked by or not. Whenever she got such confusion, it was usually because Fáfnir didn’t understand or at least disagreed on opinion with Aslaug.

“You are an oddity yourself, Svanhild.”

She giggled. “I know.”

Aslaug couldn’t help her smile. There was something about Svanhild that she couldn’t put her finger on, something similar to Finnegan, actually. Their likable aura radiated off of them and made even Aslaug and Fáfnir fond of them. She wasn’t sure how it worked; she was curious to find out as soon as possible.


	13. Romantic Subplots Get In the Way

The investigations into the attackers didn’t go much further. According to Kuria, there was no information he could extract because there was simply no information to be had. The warriors were built artificially, empty vessels imbued with the powers of the angels and demons of this world. They were imperfect imitations of humans, warriors built with a single task with very little room for deviation.

“They are like me, Master,” Kuria admitted. “An empty vessel whose only purpose is to receive orders. I have gathered that their orders were most likely related to me, but we may never know their true intent for they themselves seem to have forgotten in their failure.”

“I’ll look into more cases of these beings,” Aslaug said. “For now, keeping Kuria hidden is within our best interests. They came looking for him for a reason, and there are at least a dozen I can bring to mind already. You two, don’t leave Kuria’s side while I go out and do some searching.”

She left them abruptly on that note, leaving the three of them stuck doing research.

“What kind of creatures would create beings like this?” Finnegan wondered. “Sacrifices, walking to their death to meet another’s needs…”

“They are what djinn become should they become imbalanced,” Kuria said. “We are creatures of a delicate nature, especially when it comes to this reality. Choosing the light or the darkness within us does not generate good or evil, not in our eyes. Morals are very loose compared to humankind.”

“That…I suppose that’s just how your kind are, but…it’s just not right, not…not to me.”

“I can’t say that I fully disagree,” Fionn said. “Faeries may hold a stronger connection to supernatural beings rather than humanity, but that does not mean we are incapable of understanding morality, even if our kind primarily use it to the disadvantage of humans.”

“Any creature retaining a piece of humanity is capable of understanding morality,” Kuria said, staring at the bars of the cell where one of the inmates was being held. His soft pink gaze was mired with sorrow. “Humanity is a dangerous thing - weak in comparison to all other beings but holding the most dangerous potential. When I first came here, I had nothing. Exile to a land like this is reserved as one of the cruelest of punishments, especially when wiped of most memories of mental training against this place. Humans are capable of the harshest of punishments, especially to outsiders.”

“But your grandfather took you in, didn’t he?” Finnegan asked. “He treated you well. And _we_ took you in. Even if Fáfnir was the first one to take you in, either way, you’re a part of our family now. I might be the only human one here, but all of us have humanity in us, and that’s what’s important.”

“My grandfather did indeed take me in. He was a kind man that should not have been so kind. But all humans are different. He took me to the market once, for the first time. He needed to find ingredients that would help me, because I was getting sick. He was a doctor, you see, an alchemist, scientist, wizard - whatever you might call it. We went to a secret market. I believe it was called the Midnight Auction. It was held in the night, predictably, and I first learned the meaning of an ‘auction’ when we visited. He insisted that I stay close to him and do not speak unless he himself gave me his explicit permission. I was to be hidden under a cloak, to hide my face at all times, and never to make eye contact. I didn’t understand why, I didn’t really care at the time. In hindsight, now that I have…evolved…I believe I remember what I saw there; I saw the absolute worst of humanity.”

Finnegan reached out and took Kuria’s gloved hand. “You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to relive those memories.”

“But I _want_ to. I _think_ I do, anyway.” Kuria put his hand to his face, his eyes squeezed shut in concentration. “I don’t know what I want. I don’t _want_ things, that’s not in my nature. I can’t…I don’t…understand.”

“Tell us,” Fionn said. “Tell us of your past, of how you learned of good and evil and how humanity is cruel and how humanity has still forged you into the being you are today.”

Kuria’s hand was tightly clenched around Finnegan’s, but his entire body seemed to relax at the sound of direct orders being given to him. Finnegan realized that that had been Fionn’s intent. Fionn had known that orders would balance Kuria’s mind again, relax him. As much as Finnegan hated having servants beneath him - fearing his power over others - Kuria needed someone to give him orders or he’d be lost. A sweet and innocent, lost little djinn, but there was no telling what Kuria might become if he had no orders. Whatever had caused him to be exiled in the first place might come out again should he fail to be contained. Aslaug was his primary master, so as long as she was around, Kuria _should_ be okay, but though he couldn’t make decisions independently, that still didn’t stop his mind from wandering, which caused Kuria headaches, it seemed.

“My grandfather took me to the Midnight Auction. I was told nothing but to follow him, mute and attentive to his needs. I remember him asking me what the ingredients were for the…soup. It was a soup. He made me a soup with some ingredients that would help me, as a djinn. At the auction…there was a great deal of supernatural trafficking - basically, supernatural creatures are captured and sold for slavery or even just for parts. I saw creatures of all different kinds for sale, and the auctioneer even mistook me for an offered prize. My grandfather was not a notorious man, but he knew the supernatural community to some extent. Even so, I was afraid what might happen to him should we say the wrong things at that auction. If anything had happened to him, I would be taken, and there would be nothing I could do about it.

“It was horrible, how the creatures were treated there. Rows of creatures, sorted by type and quality. One creature had pieces of skin, nails, blood, wings, hair, saliva, even…well, pretty much everything that you could get out of it. The creature itself was the most expensive bid out of it all, since he was basically an unending, harvestable being. There were rows of little cat people - nekos. Or…neko. I don’t know what the plural of neko is. I think those were the ones that I managed to free.”

“Well that’s good, isn’t it?” Finnegan said.

“Yes. But the worst part was that I saw other djinns - djinns that had become demons and angels, cast out to this world as punishment and left to serve humans who would take advantage of them. The beauty of angels and demons to humanity is immeasurable, though to us it is nothing special. You cannot imagine the cruelty of humans, not you who are so loving and kind and protected. I hope you never see the darkness in this world, Finnegan. Fionn, I am sorry that we share the common knowledge of the terrors within humanity and all else.”

“I have found my peace,” Fionn said. “In a thousand people - perhaps many, many more - there is one who is possessed by kindness. They are the reason we tolerate the rest.”

Kuria smiled. “Yes. That is true.”

“I’m sorry that you had to go through all of that,” Finnegan said. “But you’re here. You’re with _us_ now. And we’re not going to let anyone take you away ever again.”

“Thank you, Finnegan-san. Now that this is over…” Kuria bounced up. “Can I please date you now?”

“Huh?”

“Kráka is growing impatient. And we want to be part of your relationship.”

By the time Aslaug returned, she was hardly surprised to find that her boys were all together in their guest room of the palace. Deciding to leave them alone, she headed to Svanhild’s room to present her findings.

“You really should be taking this to the war council,” Vaan said. “I’m not really qualified to be making decisions or anything.”

“Quite the contrary, you’re the most qualified one in this entire palace.”

Vaan lowered her head so that her hair fell into her face, brushing her strawberry-blonde curtain behind her ear bashfully. “Well I wouldn’t say _that_.”

“It’s true. You’re adventurous, well-studied, and you’re open to different interpretations. You’re willing to believe the impossible - like me being the reincarnation of a dragon, for instance. Or me having a djinn and a faerie for servants.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve got a grandmother who studied alchemy and sorcery for a living. I’ve seen more fantastical things in my life than most.”

“But you’re open-minded. Seeing and believing, they’re easy. When people see things for themselves, it gets easier to believe in what we once thought was impossible. But being willing to open yourself to a new perspective? To take everything with a healthy dose of skepticism? That’s a rare quality. One that I greatly admire.”

Vaan blatantly flushed, which Aslaug didn’t need Fáfnir’s powers to see. “S-So, what’d you go out looking for, anyway?”

Aslaug closed the large tomb she was using to copy notes from. “Apparently, the Saxons are a powerful force to be reckoned with. The Roman Empire has had their trouble with the Scots over past the North Sea. Honestly, it’s far more complicated than I care to go into, but basically, we should be careful with those Englanders. I have some contacts in Scotland, and I flew over there to find that things are complicated. In any case, it basically means that Christianity is gaining some momentum. But most of the conflicts are over on that isle. Why these warriors have been sent here _must_ be related to Kuria’s origins. The people we captured are not human, which can’t be a coincidence when it comes to the fact that we’re so out of the way of the Christian religion. I might take this as an omen that we should be preparing for the worst.”

“Why would they come after Kuria though? He isn’t a threat or anything, in fact no one would know he existed if they weren’t directly told. I get the whole story about djinns being the origins of angels and demons - or at least the source of the humans making myths about them as angels and demons - but Kuria is neither of those things, right? In fact, you said yourself that he was a blank slate; something happened that had him exiled from his realm and stripped of most of his djinn-ness. I just can’t see a reason why so many warriors would be sent for him.”

“According to Kuria, what he can gleam from their orders were that they were there to kill, not capture. Despite his current state, he _is_ a threat, Svanhild. He is under my jurisdiction so long as he is Kuria, but his true nature - a djinn we can only call Kráka - is much less restricted. We spent some time in Fionn’s land and kingdom, and Kráka began to train his powers. I suppose word in Faerie spreads fast, as those lands are hardly restricted when it comes to moving around. You could walk into Faerie one day and come out halfway across the world after a short stroll. Not to mention time displacement is also a thing. Word of who Kráka is in the djinn community must be well-known, for his punishment being sent here was very serious. If Kráka were to regain his identity that had him exiled in the first place, he’d be more than enough of a threat for him to be targeted by anyone who knows what he’s capable of.”

“What _is_ he capable of?”

Aslaug shrugged. “In Faerie it was easier to sustain his true form than it is here in the human world. His true form is cunning and sadistic and cruel and calculating - though you wouldn’t know it from how he acts around us. He is an actor, for sure, and can be as deadly or as innocent as he pleases. Kráka still doesn’t remember why he was exiled - he can barely remember much of his life in djinn society, though sometimes he does say things without even realizing it, as though he _does_ remember, somewhere deep down. It frustrates him, not knowing who he is. That’s no lie.”

“What if we helped him figure it out? His past, I mean,” Vaan suggested.

“I don’t know where to start. And honestly, I’m not sure what we will find will be beneficial.”

“He’s under your command, right? Bonded by an oath stronger than anything. Even if he goes rogue, you can still control him.”

“We don’t know that. The kind of djinn that Kráka might have been back then…oaths and binding deals might not be enough to stop him.”

“But they _can_ stop Kuria. Having his memories taken from him and having Kuria be his main form might prove useful. When people lose their memories, their true nature is revealed, and even when their memories are restored, they’ll never be the same person again because of the experiences they gain from being new, blank beings. Maybe that was why Kuria was created when Kráka was kicked out - to hopefully change him into a better person.”

“You’re suggesting Kuria was a deliberate choice? It’s possible…”

“And now that Kuria’s got some…love interests, maybe being good won’t be too hard for him to adjust too.”

Aslaug smiled. “Maybe. Love does weird things to people, it’s true. Kráka is the one who took interest in Finnegan and Fionn first, and his desires often influence Kuria as well. He’ll either be good for the two of them, or he’ll try to sway them to be as terrible as he is. We’ll have to see. But how are we going to even begin to find Kráka’s memories?”

“Maybe some traveling will help. You said Faerie has a better chance of sustaining Kráka?”

“Sure, but we were there for a decade and we found nothing except that Kráka can be very scary if we let him loose. There was this one bloke…” She shook her head. “Poor sod.”

“I can see the Scottish speaking,” Vaan muttered. “But maybe seeking out whoever came looking for Kuria might offer some answers.”

“If someone’s trying to kill ya, show them who’s boss and die faster.”

Vaan reached over and shoved Aslaug, which she barely felt, but she allowed Vaan to move her just a little for her own amusement. “That’s not what I’m saying, you nihilistic pessimist.”

Aslaug laughed. “I’m not a nihilistic pessimist. I’m a _strategist_. Be a realist and use it to your advantage, sweetheart. For example, when it comes to interrogation, you’re the only one in the room who’s invaluable. They threaten you with death, show them and die faster.”

“You’re too good to die.”

“Got that right.”

Aslaug realized that she and Vaan were much closer than she realized, with Vaan having scooted closer on the table she was sitting on with Aslaug standing beside her.

“You really should value your life more,” Vaan said.

“I do,” Aslaug protested. “But I’ve never really faced a proper challenge that threatened my life truly. Danger thrills me; I need it like a need food and water. I _can_ go without it, but if I go too long, I start to starve.”

Vaan stared into Aslaug’s eyes for a moment, and Aslaug could see her mind working in that mysterious way it always did. “You know what I think?”

“No, but inevitably you’re going to tell me.”

Vaan chuckled. Aslaug wondered how it was possible that her face could _not_ contort into an unappealing way. It’s like her skin didn’t know how to flex improperly. She had dimples that were always soft and sweet, and her skin was irritably smooth. Aslaug wondered why just a small exhaling of air from Vaan had Aslaug tense like she was getting punched in the gut. It was annoying.

“I think that you don’t value your own life because you value the lives of those around you. You may not be in danger, but your friends are not as invulnerable as you are - even if they can handle themselves better than most. Protecting others is difficult because they are not…you; but worrying about people you love is…well, it’s nice. You can only value things when they are finite and ephemeral, and your friendships are always unstable. But that’s what makes them so amazing when friendships _do_ work out, because even though it _can_ fail, it _doesn’t_. You love your small little family, and that’s what keeps you such a good person despite the fact that you don’t have to be, and in fact your dragon half is actively opposing it.”

‘ _I do_ not!’

“Yes, you do,” Aslaug muttered. Vaan was used to Aslaug talking to Fáfnir on occasions, so she probably understood what just happened.

Vaan giggled, bringing Aslaug out of her head with Fáfnir. “See? You’re a good person all on your own, no dragon involved. You’re you, and you have love for people rather than just objects like a dragon would.”

“What does me being a good person have to do with anything?” Aslaug asked.

Vaan smiled coyly and reached up to run her fingers along Aslaug’s jaw before finally ending with her index under Aslaug’s chin, forcing them to make eye contact. “You’re not as heartless as you seem to think you are, Aslaug. You want to be all mysterious to me - maybe to protect me, maybe to protect yourself - but I’ll figure you out soon enough.”

“I welcome you to try, darling,” Aslaug said lightly.

Vaan just smiled and started leaning closer. For a moment, Aslaug didn’t realize what was happening, but it finally clicked in her mind a moment too late. Vaan’s lips brushed against hers, sending a shock through her body that caused her to jump into action and jump back, nearly tripping over the chair next to the desk.

She used her powers to catch and rebalance herself while turning to the door. “I’ve gotta go tell Kuria our plans and see if he’s okay with the risk of finding out who he is. We’ll need to ask Kráka really, so I’ll have to work out how to make that happen. Tell your war council to watch out for any more of these guys in the lands, but if we’re going to be leaving that means that the attacks around here will probably lessen, so…yeah.”

Aslaug quickly turned and headed out of the room, slamming the door closed behind her and locking it with her Vector.

‘ _Aslaug, what the hell was that?_ ’ Fáfnir asked.

‘ **_I have no idea,_ **’ Aslaug admitted.

‘ _You know who she is, Aslaug. You should tell her the truth._ ’

‘ **_What? And make her realize she just nearly made out with her sister? What would she_ ** **think** **_, Fáfnir? She’d start avoiding me, everything would get awkward._ **’

‘ _And you’re worried about her opinion because…?_ ’

‘ **_Because she’s my friend! Because friends come short and sweet when it comes to us, and I don’t need another reason to drive away the person that is so much like me, who understands me, who’s suffered and come out just_ ** **like** **_me._ **’

Fáfnir sighed. ‘ _You like her because she’s like you._ ’

‘ **_I like her because she’s like me, but so much better._ **’

Aslaug headed back to their room in the palace, closing the door behind her with a heavy sigh.

“Does something trouble you, Aslaug?” Fionn asked.

She looked up and saw him staring down at her from the large bed. Aslaug realized how late it was, how long she had been talking with Vaan about her travels. The day had already been departing when she’d returned from her excursion; Vaan had skipped dinner and stayed up into the late, moon-lit hours of the night to spend more time with her alone. The room had been lit by mostly candlelight and just a bit of moonlight from the window. Aslaug recalled Vaan’s face under the dancing shadows of the flickering flames, and her heart rate sped up again.

“Lady Aslaug,” Fionn urged. He moved to climb out of bed and knelt down beside her. She realized he was naked, but that wasn’t uncommon for Fionn since he was a faerie and never got bashful when it came to his lack of garments. “You look unwell,” he said.

“I…” She knew that lying to Fionn was virtually impossible, even in the dark where the lighting reduced their vision of each other. “Svanhild is my sister, you know this.”

“Yes.”

“I think…we…she tried to kiss me, and she sorta succeeded for a split second.”

Fionn sat down next to her, pulling his knees up. Despite having no blanket or clothing, Fionn was a fire-based elemental user, so he always radiated heat - meaning that he had little concept of what getting cold meant. Which meant he was pulling his legs up for his own comfort or for Aslaug’s sake of modesty, though at this point in their relationship Aslaug was used to Fionn’s faerie-ness already.

“Do you love her?”

“I…might. But-!” Aslaug put her hands to her head and lowered her face behind her knees. “But it shouldn’t be like that! I can’t…! Why?! Ugh!”

“Lady Aslaug-”

“We need to leave. We’re going to go searching for Kráka and his past, why he’s being hunted, who’s doing it, and what it means for the future. We leave this place behind. Just for some time. Just so that I can…move past this.”

Fionn was not human, and for many reasons Aslaug was glad. Fionn didn’t argue, he didn’t protest, he didn’t make Aslaug talk more about what had happened. He simply asked, “When?”

“As soon as possible.”

“At dawn then. Kuria will be ready, Finnegan may request an explanation.”

“He won’t get one until we’re out of the city. And we can’t let Vaan know. She knows, she knows what I’ll do, what I’m feeling, and she’ll want to…”

“Why do you not just tell her, Aslaug?”

“Because if I did that…”

“Ah.” He nodded in understanding. “You would have to admit defeat within your own mind. The possibility of love is enticing to all, no matter the circumstances surrounding it.”

“She’s my half-sister, Fionn. It’s not like with Kuria where the worst thing you have to deal with is Finnegan’s opinion on a polyamory.”

He chuckled. “That is true. I understand your frustration, Aslaug. The true definition of a sibling relies upon the connections built through a life together. You are siblings through blood, but not siblings of mind. As a faerie with dozens of brothers and few sisters, some far older, some far younger than I, I believe I am in a position to relate in the sense that I have little connection with many of them for I fail to have developed close childhood experiences. However, as I have already developed my relationship with Finnegan and subsequently Kráka, I have little experience in falling in love with any of my siblings.”

“Your point?”

“I cannot sympathize with you, but I can make my best attempts at empathizing.”

Aslaug sighed. “Normal for you, I know.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “I am Sigurdsdottir, daughter of Sigurd Fafnesbane; Brynhildrsdottir, daughter of a shieldmaiden Valkyrie. This is _not_ what I expected to be dealing with.”

“Ah, but rarely ever do we expect the challenges presented, no? Yet overcoming the barriers we face is essential to growth.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, learning from our mistakes and overcoming stuff.”

“You should tell the lady Svanhild the truth of your relations. That is the challenge you must overcome now. We leave at dawn. And Finnegan shall send his animosity towards _you_ when he is told of the reason for our impromptu departure. He quite enjoys being the guest of royalty.”

“He’s been a guest of royalty for over half his life at this point.”

“Not _human_ royalty,” Fionn corrected.

“Point.”

Fionn stood and returned to bed without another word, which Aslaug just shrugged and accepted. She went to the other bed and plopped down, finding that Kuria was absent from the second bed - as usually Aslaug and Kuria shared a bed while Fionn and Finnegan shared one. It was odd to outsiders, as Finnegan and Aslaug were supposed to be married, and even Kuria felt uncomfortable with sharing a bed with his master. He preferred to just sleep on the floor or not sleep at all. Since technically Fionn was known as Finnegan’s servant to the rest of the human world, it was basically the case that each of them was sharing a bed with a servant, which looked very wrong on the outside.

But now the three of them were apparently sharing a bed and Aslaug got one all to herself. Not that she minded sleeping on the floor either if she wanted alone time (actually she more often _preferred_ the floor) but now she put together why Fionn was naked - as he didn’t _always_ sleep that way.

Aslaug passed out, setting a mental alarm to wake up with the sun.

By the next morning, Aslaug had packed up their belongings (already gathered pretty well because she was obsessive and kept all their things organized just in case they needed to make a quick escape), and had made breakfast to try and apologize for doing this to Finnegan.

By the time she got back, Fionn was reading a book - fully dressed and ready to leave - while Finnegan and Kráka were making out in their bed. Finn was pinned down by Kráka but he didn’t seem unhappy about it by any means. At least their lower halves were concealed by the bed covers. Aslaug was just surprised to see that Kráka was out first thing in the morning when - she assumed - they had been out for a while last night and Kuria should’ve been exhausted.

“Ahem,” Aslaug cleared her throat.

After Finnegan hid under the covers out of embarrassment, despite how long Aslaug had already tolerated walking in on him and Fionn making out, Kráka explained that both they and Fionn had convinced Finnegan that they would leave for Aslaug’s sake. Finnegan was still grumpy, but he accepted Aslaug’s consolation breakfast.

“I see that you’re having a better time sustaining your form,” Aslaug noticed.

“The offer of sex _does_ help,” Kráka shrugged.

Finnegan shoved Kráka while he blushed and continued eating his breakfast.

“He returned to Kuria upon falling asleep and woke as Kráka,” Fionn explained. “I would blame his libido, but he has the decency to not wake up desiring sex immediately.”

“Just after at least five minutes,” Aslaug said.

“Seven, actually.”

“I hate you all,” Finnegan grumbled through his meal.

Kráka scooted closer on the bed and leaned in, pulling Finnegan’s chin up with his finger. “No you don’t, love. At least that’s not what you were saying last night.”

Finnegan, if possible, blushed further and shoved Kráka hard enough to shove him off the bed.

Aslaug was reminded of her own experience the night before and bit the inside of her lip, thinking of how to move the conversation forward to distract herself from her thoughts. With Vaan. Brushing her fingers down Aslaug’s chin. Holding their faces close. Speaking with her stupidly smooth voice. And then moving closer.

“I’m surprised you’re not used to this already, Finnegan,” Aslaug crossing her legs and leaning back on the bed. “What with dating Fionn for so long.”

“Can we all just please shut up?!” Finnegan complained.

“Kráka, are you good right now?” Aslaug asked.

“No,” they said cheerfully. “In fact, I’m about to…”

He abruptly cut off, his eyes rolling up in his head as he collapsed into the floor. Aslaug counted four seconds before Kuria popped up behind the bed, his contrasting white skin and hair against what had formerly been Kráka’s dark black skin just a few moments before an unnatural change she had gotten used to by now. Curious pink eyes looked around, trying to remember what was going on. Though Kráka and Kuria shared memories, sometimes right after a switch they had a bit of amnesia - just like when waking up from a dream and trying to recall what you’d been dreaming up only a moment before. He didn’t seem to notice or mind his lack of clothing. Aslaug didn’t think that Kuria had any genitals at all considering how blank of a slate he was, while Kráka had both. Needless to say, Kuria had no reason for modesty even if he _weren’t_ a blank soul.

“Master?”

“Get dressed, Kuria. We’re leaving.”

He jumped up to his feet. “Yes Master!”

He hurried to gather his clothes and dress. Aslaug watched in amusement how Finnegan struggled to fight the urge to look Kuria’s way. Fionn had no such reservations. Through her radius, Aslaug knew that Kráka and Kuria had the same body, just different colors and different auras, which she wasn’t interested in anyway, but it was amusing to watch her boys interacting. It occurred to her that Kuria rarely changed clothes, as his garb was magically maintained so it didn’t need washing, and it could shift into anything that he needed for disguise. They had never known what either Kuria or Kráka looked like before last night.

She didn’t understand what it was like to have an infatuation with someone like that.

“Get Finnegan prepared to leave as well,” Aslaug said. “We’re leaving in three minutes.”

Finnegan rolled his eyes. “I should be angry, but honestly I’m used to you now, Aslaug.”


	14. Becoming Five

In three minutes, they were flying out the window of their room and beginning their trek.

“We’ll make it to the edges of the kingdom within the hour by this route,” Fionn said.

“This way,” Aslaug said, turning and leading them on a completely different path.

“Master?” Kuria asked.

“She followed us,” Aslaug said simply. “I can sense her.”

Aslaug led the charge, but multiple times she had to redirect their route, to the point that she’d done a complete circle a couple times.

Aslaug whacked her head. “Dammit, Fáfnir, what’s wrong with the radius?”

‘ _Aslaug, we’ve been breached._ ’

She sighed. “Wonderful.”

“What’s wrong?” Finnegan asked.

“For some reason my radius isn’t working right. I’m being misdirected.”

“Someone can do that?”

“Vaan can. I hate magicians.”

“Sorcery so powerful…” Fionn muttered. “She is a formidable opponent indeed.”

Aslaug readjusted her traveling cloak in a huff. “Yeah, well, it’s getting annoying. My radius has been breached, meaning I can’t be trusted. Kuria, lead us out of the kingdom and Svanhild’s reach without her coming within ten meters. No talking to her if she calls out. Make sure she cannot see us by any means, magical or physically with her own eyes; make sure she is not aware of our presence.”

“Yes, Master.”

Kuria put his hands together and summoned a small wave of energy. He pulled his hands apart in a circular motion, opening a small portal that he shoved forward. It opened into a full-sized portal, which they hurried through without question. They came out on a trading route, and Kuria pointed the way that they were aiming.

Aslaug at least didn’t feel Vaan’s presence anymore, but she still wondered how Vaan managed to hack into her power radius. Vaan was good, but she’d never been able to do that before. Perhaps she had been holding herself back, but it was unlikely. Aslaug was stronger than Vaan, she’d had many years training with Fáfnir to prove it, and training with Fáfnir hadn’t been easy. Aslaug’s defenses were impenetrable, both physically and mentally. So what was happening?

Aslaug was able to forget about Vaan as their journey went on without encountering her. Aslaug shouldn’t be surprised, considering how direct her orders to Kuria had been. Then again, she knew very well that she had said that Kuria’s orders only remained until they were escorted out of the grounds of the kingdom, meaning afterwards, Vaan might be able to find them. But Aslaug didn’t have the heart to clarify that she didn’t want to see Vaan ever again.

“Aslaug,” Fionn urged one night while they were camping out.

“I know. I can sense her, and I assume she can sense me too. How did she hack me?” Aslaug wiggled her fingers, summoning energy to her palm. “It should be impossible.”

“A kiss often manifests as a strong magical connection. When you tell me that she kissed you, how far did the kiss go?”

“It was barely anything. At least, that’s what I can remember. Memories like that get hazy. But it’s not like everyone I kiss starts gaining access to Fáfnir’s powers - not that I kiss a lot of people.”

“Bear in mind, she has the blood of Lord Siegfried as well, Aslaug. She does not have the power of a Valkyrie as you do, but she still possesses formidable blood.”

“She wasn’t born with Fáfnir in her head, but when I came into contact with her, I might have activated some of her power. She’s got some special powers in her genes, but they weren’t as active as mine. I guess that explains why she doesn’t have a Fáfnir in her head either.”

“Combined with the fact that you are the elder of your father’s children.”

“True. Many factors contributed to who I am, factors that probably couldn’t ever be replicated.”

“Aslaug, please tell me. Why do you fear Lady Svanhild’s reaction to the truth of your relations?”

Aslaug stared up at the night sky. The night stars were accompanied by no moon that night. “You know who my mother was and how she met her end. Brynhildr caused a great deal of harm to Vaan and her family. I don’t know how she’ll feel about that. I meant to tell her before we became such good friends, but now…now I have to deal with both of these issues together. Telling Vaan who I am will most likely drive her away forever.”

“And under the possibility that it does not drive her away?”

“She’ll never see me the same again. I am afraid that she’ll never smile at me, she’ll never feel comfortable around me again, and the only reason that she’ll ever interact with me is out of obligation. The friendship that I have with Vaan is something that I value. If it had never turned into something more, things would be so much simpler.”

“Then remain her friend, Aslaug. And as a friend, you cannot avoid her.”

She sighed. “I know. I can’t avoid her and hurt her even more just because of my irrational feelings. But they’re _her_ feelings too.”

“It is not uncommon for royal bloodlines to take lovers within their family. Humans believe it is a way to remain pure in their lineage.”

“Yeah, but not _all_ of us are like that. It’s just not right, okay?”

Fionn nodded. “It is your opinion, your life to live. But Svanhild deserves to learn the truth so that she might know not to pursue your heart.”

Aslaug nodded. “I’ll find a way to tell her.”

The next day, they specifically went to the village that Vaan was staying in. Aslaug assumed that Vaan could sense her in the same way that she could sense Vaan, which was proven when Vaan was standing at the edge of town waiting for them.

“Hey!”

Aslaug walked right past her, looking for the nearest tavern.

“Well that was rude,” Vaan muttered.

“Sorry,” Finnegan apologized. “She gets like this sometimes.”

“Oh, it’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before.”

Vaan waved her hand passively. She was dressed in a dull green traveling cloak with the hood up. Her clothes were simple, but far too fancy for the peasantry of the town they were in. She had new traveling boots, thick pants, and a smooth, cotton, white shirt. It was nothing that could hide her beauty, but she had given it her best efforts.

“Nearly lost the clothes on my back a couple times,” Vaan explained as Aslaug found them a table in the tavern.

“Sit,” Aslaug ordered. “I’m going to get us food. Vaan, you don’t get a say on what you have.”

Fionn and Kuria were first in the booth while Finnegan urged Vaan to do as she was told.

“When it comes to traveling, Aslaug’s the most ingrained into human society,” Finnegan explained. “I’ve been held up in my parent’s noble lives, Fionn’s been a faerie, and Kuria’s a djinn. In the end, Aslaug knows best, since she left her noble family often and hung out with all the lower-class citizens. You listen to her and don’t ask questions unless you wanna get caught in a bar fight and end up wanted with a price on your head.”

“I admit that it’s useful to have someone who knows the land and its people. Despite my efforts, it seems that I was easily identified as the target for multiple muggings just traveling here.”

“You fail to hide your identity to a successful degree,” Fionn said. “Traveling alone is your first mistake. Traveling alone as a woman is your second. Had you no bodyguards you might trust to accompany you?”

“Well when you’re running away from the palace, things happen like that. I couldn’t let anyone know that I was leaving. Besides, I can handle myself.” She tapped the bag at her hip under her traveling cloak. “I’m a sorcerer and an alchemist, and I know my stuff.”

“Good enough for me,” Finnegan said. “So, what have you been getting up to during your travels?”

“Well, beyond the muggings where I might have left a couple of my assailants screaming in pain or fed to the wildlife, I’ve just been traveling alone, following you guys. I’ve been able to track Aslaug pretty well, though you all _did_ give me the slip many times, which I’m impressed by.”

“We could have further evaded your efforts,” Fionn clarified. “However, Aslaug decided she would indulge your company, and avoiding you was only becoming a nuisance. If you become a further hindrance while you are accompanying us, then we shall abandon you at first opportunity.”

“I don’t think you’re going to be any hindrance,” Finnegan volunteered. He notably didn’t apologize for Fionn’s bluntness.

“I understand that,” Vaan said. “I’ll try to be a part of your merry band. Look, I really wanna help you figure this whole thing out with Kuria’s people and his origins. All my life, things have been complicated. It started with my father’s death and only got worse from there when my mother was forced to remarry at my grandmother’s behest. This ended in tragedy that you cannot possibly understand. It’s a miracle that my mother is still alive and that she found a husband who treats her well. But I’ve never had the chance to truly _live_ before, to do _good_ in this world, to fight back against evils that had threatened my family. Now that I’ve grown up and learned my grandmother’s ways, I want to make amends for all the suffering she caused; I want to help my people and my lands. Besides, my grandfather is an old man, and soon he will be passing down his kingdom to Niflung or me or maybe some of his other children will come to take it from us. If, against the odds, the kingdom is handed to me one day - either by my grandfather’s decree or some incident disabling Niflung - I must be ready to lead. I cannot live in solitude and in mourning forever. I have skills; I’d best use them to aid you while I can. Even if I am not to ascend to the throne, I still want to do good work for my kingdom, and without the crown to bear, I can travel around the lands as well.”

“It depends on what Aslaug decides,” Finnegan said. “But I’ll put in a good word for you.”

“I appreciate that.”

Vaan looked over to Kuria on the other side of the booth beside Finnegan. Kuria was simply staring at the table in front of him. Vaan knew Kuria’s condition as a djinn and as a servant who had lost his entire identity and needed a master to survive. When no one was addressing Kuria, he simply stared off into space with no thoughts in his head, no goals or motivations. Some found it creepy, but despite how he appeared, he was still listening to everything that was said in case he was asked about it later. He was like a recording device in that sense, and because he had no ulterior motives, he could be trusted to not spread sensitive information that he heard unless he was asked by his master for the information. Vaan wished that she had at least a single servant like that, able to listen without concern of that information being leaked.

“So, Kuria, do you like traveling?” Vaan asked.

Kuria jumped into action, as though someone flipped a switch to turn him on. “I have no opinion on traveling, Lady Svanhild.”

“Is it any hindrance to you?”

“No, my lady. I have little concern for my condition during travels, and maintaining the well-being of my master and my companions is no trouble for they are very capable of their own survival.”

“That’s nice, isn’t it? Being able to trust your companions.”

“It serves no barrier.”

“Vaan, stop harassing my servant,” Aslaug called.

She returned from the bar with a tray of food and drinks, setting it down in the center of the table and handing out meals to Finnegan, Fionn, and Vaan, while taking the final meal for herself. She plopped down beside Finnegan, squishing him closer to Kuria - though the djinn didn’t mind.

“The meat in this place is excellent,” Aslaug said. “The soup’s got some good spices as well.” Finnegan was pleased to hear that, as he had been the one with the soup. “Might wanna adjust the sandwich to your taste, Fionn.”

Fionn nodded and began taking apart his sandwich.

“You tested all of our food?” Vaan asked.

“Of course. I have the best immune system and I know their likes and dislikes. Also I can check for enchantments as well. We lived in Faerie for a while as very important people, meaning we had to be extra cautious with what we consumed. Besides, some of us are picky eaters.”

“You are far more critical than I,” Fionn protested.

Aslaug just hummed in amusement while she ate the meat off some kind of raw animal part that Vaan couldn’t identify. She wondered about Aslaug eating raw meat - and so much of it, at that - but Vaan just chalked it down to Aslaug’s dragon half.

“So…uh…” Vaan picked at the salad in front of her. “How much progress have you made in the investigation of Kuria’s past?”

Aslaug wiped her hand using a cloth and then reached into her bag. She pulled out a crystal and set it on the table, a hefty chunk of rock about the size of a tankard. “This is a Scarletite. We’ve been using it to track down sources of djinn magic. If we can find a heavy source of energy from the djinn universe, we might be able to tap into whatever was lost to Kuria when he was exiled here. Since Kuria is so powerful anyway, just coming into contact with some kind of portal or leak of his universe might be enough to empower him into getting back his memories.”

“I see. And what if that doesn’t work?”

“There are many different options, ranging from seeking out some djinn-related artifacts, tracking down the people who are hunting Kuria, and going to the djinn realm ourselves.”

“Can you guys even survive there?”

“Kuria can because he’s a djinn; Fionn can because he’s a pure-blooded faerie - though both he and some kind of half breed faerie would have some discomfort depending on how strong they are with magic - and Finnegan’s Io has merged with his body and can protect him because it is magic-based. And I’m more than strong enough to handle myself in a magic-heavy environment.”

“Wow. If someone had some magic-attacking technique, you’d all be screwed.”

“Kuria and Fionn, maybe, but Finnegan and I are still human, meaning the worst we would face is being disconnected from our more magic-based abilities. Even then, Fionn and Kuria are very strong. In the worst of situations, we can improvise.”

“Not that that sounds very nice,” Finnegan said.

“There are herbs and techniques used specifically to turn one’s magical prowess against them,” Fionn informed them. “We fey abhor such skills, but we study them for practical purposes.”

“Enough with all the serious stuff,” Finnegan interjected. “How about we just enjoy ourselves a little?”

“What do you guys do when you’re traveling?” Vaan asked.

Vaan and Finnegan had the most engaging conversation at the table with Fionn and Aslaug piping in on occasion to clarify things with Kuria sitting silently at the corner of the booth. Fionn shot Aslaug a knowing look, and she glared back that she was going to get to it, just not with everyone there together. It had to be between her and Vaan alone.

By the time they were heading out, Aslaug paid for their meals and led them out of town.

“Hey, aren’t we going to stay a little longer?” Vaan asked.

“Why?” Aslaug responded without breaking stride. “There’s nothing important to us here.”

“Shouldn’t we scout the area or something, get some info on the land here?”

“No need. We’re just passing through. The Scarletite is leading us very far away.”

“Don’t you guys help people when they need some hunting done? What if someone needs your help here?”

“And we’re supposed to knock on every door asking if there’s a crisis to be resolved?”

“Finnegan told me tons of stories of when you helped people.”

“Many of those incidents we stumbled upon by accident. We don’t go looking for trouble; the last thing we need is notoriety.”

“How does _helping_ people give you _notoriety?_ ”

“Being known for great goods provokes great evils to confront you. And do you know what happens when evil people start to up their game? Innocents get hurt.”

“So you’re protecting people through your inaction? Is that it? You let people suffer so that more people won’t suffer?”

Aslaug stopped dead in her tracks, causing Finnegan to nearly bump into her if his Io hadn’t helped maneuver him properly from within. “That’s right.” Aslaug turned and faced Vaan. “I chose to not go looking for trouble so that trouble doesn’t come looking for me. Have you got a problem with that?”

“Yeah, a _little_ _BIT_!” Vaan said without flinching. “Come on, Lau. I know you better than that. You like helping people, you won’t just stand around and do nothing if someone is suffering. You can continue your mission at any time. Please, can’t we just stay and just make certain that there’s no one here who needs our help?”

Aslaug stared into Vaan’s eyes, but the princess didn’t waver.

“Ugh. Fine,” Aslaug conceded. “I’ll do an area sweep and we’ll help whoever needs it. But if we find any orphans, we’re _not_ adopting them.”

“Thank you,” Vaan said with so much passion that Aslaug might’ve thought she was trying out for a role in a play.

Aslaug closed her eyes and expanded her radius. She had strengthened it to the point that it was fully capable of encompassing a small town like this. Aslaug had been mentally training herself in order to be able to process large amounts of information within her radius at once - there was really nothing better to do other than train during their stay in Faerie.

“Twenty-some cases of distress that I can pinpoint at the moment,” Aslaug said. “Kuria, are there any serious cases that require intervention that you can sense?”

Kuria nodded. “Three are severe cases, Master. Thirteen are mild intervention. Four are not truly distress situations.”

“Then let’s start with those three,” Vaan said. “Kuria, can you lead us to the most severe of them all and inform us of the situation surrounding the case?”

Kuria nodded. “Yes Master.”

Kuria began to walk off with Vaan in tow, while Finnegan and Fionn shared a nervous glance.

“It is no accident,” Fionn confirmed. “He called her ‘Master.’ Aslaug, her connections to Fáfnir seem to run deep.”

“Wonderful,” Aslaug muttered. “The last thing we need is someone who can use my abilities against my will.”

“Using _Kuria_ against your will,” Finnegan muttered.

They followed after Vaan and Kuria, who were heading into the residential area of town as opposed to the shopping area for passing travelers.

‘ _She has you whipped, little Aslaug,_ ’ Fáfnir said.

‘ ** _No, she doesn’t._** ’

‘ _I would beg to differ. No one’s been able to stand up to your stubbornness like she has._ ’

“Aw, I’m flattered,” Vaan called from up ahead.

Aslaug’s eyes narrowed. “Okay, that’s enough.”

Aslaug grabbed them all with her radius and pulled them between the thin alley between buildings. She dropped everyone except for Vaan, slamming her up against the wall.

“Hey! What the-?”

“How much do you know about me and my powers?!” Aslaug hissed.

“Nothing! Not much, at least!”

“What connections do you have to me now?”

“If you’re asking what I can do, the answer is that I can sense you and hear a voice inside your head.”

“Can you hear _my_ thoughts?”

“No. I can only hear a one-sided conversation. Your dragon talks to you a lot, but it’s hard to put together half a conversation.”

“What have you learned from my dragon? Can you speak to him yourself?”

“No! No, I can just hear him, he can’t seem to hear me. Or at least he’s never acknowledged me. As for what I’ve heard, all I heard was something that you needed to tell me and that you like me - and I like you too! I don’t get why you pretend like we can’t be friends! If you’re trying to protect me, don’t. I’m not as delicate as other princesses. I wanna be a part of your crew, Aslaug, and I know that you probably don’t like new people raining in on your parade, but…you guys are the closest thing I’ve had to friends in a long time - maybe in my whole life. I don’t wanna keep sitting around wallowing over my past all alone, trying to put on a brave front for my mom, letting my brothers try and defend me. I’m capable, and I want to go with you and travel and help people and do some good for others and for myself.”

‘ _Careful, she makes good speeches. Finnegan might fall for her._ ’

“She speaks wisdom; Finnegan might fall in love,” Fionn muttered.

“You’re nice,” Kuria said.

Aslaug scoffed. “It seems you’ve won over everyone. But I expect you to follow some rules if you wish to attempt to venture forth along this path.” Aslaug released Vaan from her hold against the wall. “First off, you do what I say, no questions asked - especially in an emergency. Second, don’t ask stupid questions. Third, you stay out of my head and my powers, or at the very least only use them when absolutely necessary. Fourth, don’t get us into unnecessary trouble. Ask before you do anything that you think might have consequences. Ask before you do things that you think have no consequences at _all_ , because you’re probably wrong. And finally, for the gods’ sake, if I want to be alone, you leave me alone or I can’t promise you won’t get punched in the face and knocked into next week. Might ruin your pretty face, princess.”

She chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind. I agree to your terms. Now, I believe we had some people who needed our help.”

The rest of the day consisted of their group going around and helping out the cases that Kuria had identified. With so many cases being moderate, Vaan couldn’t help but at least check them out, dragging Aslaug along with the boring task. Aslaug tried to slip away to go to the pub, but Vaan insisted she go with them just in case. Aslaug kept her traveling cloak hood up and kept her distance while Vaan directly handled the situations. Aslaug made Kuria and the others disguise themselves with glamours so that their faces wouldn’t be remembered - a standard procedure that Vaan only went along with because Aslaug reminded her of their deal and how Aslaug was the superior power if they were to continue together.

Aslaug was seriously considering turning Vaan’s brain to mush at times - she was fully capable, what with Vaan being connected to her and all. Aslaug was superior in terms of wielding Fáfnir’s power, meaning that she had the potential to eject Vaan out of the connection, though it wouldn’t be a painless process and might actually risk Vaan dying or at the very least being left in a coma. Aslaug wasn’t _that_ cruel.

“Are we done yet?” Aslaug demanded.

“Come on, Aslaug, I know you’re having fun doing good deeds,” Vaan said.

“That is an opinion you are having.”

“We are finished, Aslaug,” Fionn said. “We can move at dusk.”

“Dusk?” Vaan asked.

“The stupid questions, again,” Aslaug muttered. “We camp out in order to save time and money. We’re not staying the night, Vaan, no matter how much you hate it. If you have a problem with that, then leave.”

“Yeesh, fine, let’s go.”

By the time the sun had fully set, the town could barely be seen in the distance.

Their traveling together consisted of Vaan being the loudest member of their crew by far, with Aslaug in second place simply because she had to explain things or complain about Vaan. Finnegan was trying to be nice about it, but there were times that even he needed some peace and quiet - he _was_ an introvert, after all, and a pretty shy guy in general. Fionn spoke only when he felt it was necessary, as he always did, and Kuria spoke only when spoken to, as he always did.

“Aslaug,” Fionn kept urging her.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” she would always reply.

And she _would_ get to talking with Vaan. Eventually. Aslaug honestly didn’t know what she saw in the girl, at least until Vaan proved to be far smarter than she seemed, and her survival skills were at least on point. Aslaug was impressed by Vaan sometimes, but mostly entertained. Having her in their group wasn’t as bad as Aslaug made it seem.

Vaan never spoke up about what happened between her and Aslaug that prompted Vaan to be able to tap into Aslaug’s power. Fionn knew, of course, Kuria didn’t really care, and Aslaug assumed that Finnegan either suspected or Fionn outright told him - since Fionn couldn’t keep a secret from his boyfriend to save his life. Well, maybe to save _their_ lives, one might argue. ‘One’ being Fionn.

Their journey lasted a while, far longer than Aslaug had wanted to spend with Vaan by their side. Following the Scarletite, they faced greater and greater opposition in the form of monsters that seemed to be imbued with enchanted energies that were thick within the land. It was similar to creatures that were from Faerie, who naturally gained mutations from the high levels of potent magic seeping through the lands. The plants in Faerie were affected as well, and Fionn began to point out that the flora and fauna alike were affected the closer they came to their goal.

Their journey finally led them to a cave.


	15. Kuria's Past

“I expected it to be flashier,” Vaan said.

“Djinns are not built for show, we are built for efficiency,” Kráka said.

“I like the look though.”

“Thank you. I am told that djinns are beautiful by human standards, though I can hardly be the judge myself.”

Kráka ran their hands through their radiant white hair that refused to dirty no matter how hard anyone and anything tried to sully it. Aslaug glanced at her dirty orange hair - not dirty in the sense that it needed a wash, but dirty in the sense that it was a dull, human color with black highlights weaved throughout. Fionn had shimmering magic red hair that shifted shades depending on his mood. Finnegan had normal hair similar to Aslaug’s, but it was a few shades brighter and it was very short and curly; it suited him well. He didn’t have to untangle a rat’s nest if he forgot to brush his hair for a few days. Luckily, Aslaug didn’t have too many problems thanks to her power magic prowess, but still. Even Vaan’s strawberry blonde hair seemed more beautiful than Aslaug’s.

“Can I braid your hair some time?” Vaan requested.

Kráka laughed. “Haha, sure! Maybe you can help me finally do Aslaug’s hair. Fionn doesn’t mind lacing flowers into his or my hair, but Aslaug says she’d rather cut hers all off than have someone give it a makeover.”

“I’ve only ever seen her do her hair once, and that was when we met,” Finnegan said. “It was beautiful; I don’t understand why you don’t like styling it more often.”

“Just because I _can_ do my own hair doesn’t mean I do it on a regular basis for fun. And no way am I allowing anyone _else_ to touch my hair. I did my hair myself that day we met, Finnegan; I’m self-taught and I know how to do my hair at least a dozen different ways. The furthest I will go is a ponytail and maybe a loose bun if I need it out of the way.”

“Are _you_ okay with us doing your hair, Finnegan?” Vaan asked.

“Oh, he’s probably the best out of all of us,” Kráka said. “We’ve got some skill from our natural origins - being a faerie and a djinn - but Finnegan’s got an advantage neither of us had: two sisters who dragged him into _everything_ girly, especially doing hair. When his hair grows out, he’s a handsome little devil.”

“Kráka…” Finnegan muttered.

“Well, that settles it, I guess,” Vaan declared. She turned to Aslaug. “We’re going to get your hair into a fancy do, one way or another. You’re outnumbered, Lau.”

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “I’d love to see you try. Anyway, Kráka, you’d better get in there before you run out of time.”

They waved passively. “Oh, I’ve been building my stamina recently. You’d be surprised how much powerful you can get with two lovers by your side - a human and a faerie, very valuable. Cute, sweet, and healthy for me; what more could I possibly ask for?”

Kráka moved to kiss both Finnegan then Fionn before waving and heading deeper into the cave where they’d tracked down a potent source of djinn energy. It could be a portal or it could just be a leak from the djinn dimension - either way it was their best chance. Kuria and Kráka both admitted that the land seemed familiar, and Kráka suggested that it might be the location that they had first arrived in the human world.

The trip down there had been filled with magical energies and multiple monsters that were the result of wildlife having prolonged exposure to the potent magical energies. Even humanoids seem to have been turned, though it was unclear if they were fully human or if there were creatures like fey as well. The caverns were large and twisted around, and Vaan had the hardest time maneuvering so she often resorted to grabbing onto Aslaug and demanding she fly them around. By the time they finally made it to the innermost part of the area, Kráka had emerged and was pinpointing where they needed to go. The transformation had been quick but subtle; Vaan said she’d been expecting some big spectacle, yet she had almost missed the transformation entirely while she was busy trying not to fall or get killed by mutated spiders the size of small horses.

“Will they be okay?” Finnegan asked.

“It’s hard to say,” Fionn admitted. “What Kráka might find should they encounter their past…we cannot be sure of anything except that Kráka will not return the same djinn.” He placed his hand on the wall of the cave. “This place is heavy with magical energies, almost too much for me to comprehend. You can feel it, can you not, Aslaug?”

“Yes,” she said. “It’s almost intense enough to cause a migraine.”

She placed her hand on the wall and felt a small jolt. The walls themselves seemed to be luminescent, overloading with enchanted magic. Humans might one day call rock like this radioactive, and Aslaug worried for Vaan’s well-being. She was the one with the least protection, though she had brought some herbs and basic spells to protect herself. She also had some of Fáfnir’s power in her, but not nearly as much as Aslaug, and even Aslaug herself was having trouble preventing a splitting headache. She felt like she was standing on a precipice, about to be pushed off the edge, but she was barely holding herself back. If she fell, her head would descend into agonizing pain. She could hardly imagine how Vaan was doing. Aslaug observed Vaan and knew that she was straining herself. Aslaug wondered if Vaan was already suffering, but she just refused to say anything in order to keep her pride. It would be just like a daughter of Sigurd to do so, after all.

“Whatever happens to Kráka, we cannot regret what we’ve done,” Aslaug said. “The bonds Kráka and Kuria had formed with us have built strong connections. The hope is that they retain enough of their humanity to remember us and who we were to them. But we couldn’t just let Kuria and Kráka live on mired in confusion about who they were. With this looming threat on the horizon, I don’t like the idea of leaving past Kráka unknowing of his crimes and his virtues as well.”

Finnegan nodded. “He’ll remember us. He has to.”

“Your optimism is welcome,” Fionn said, taking Finnegan’s hand. “You can do what I am incapable of: speak of that which we cannot truly be sure of, so sure and true as though the Fates themselves have whispered into your ear.”

Finnegan leaned against Fionn, closing his eyes and muttering, “Stubborn faerie.”

It was a term of endearment that had developed between them before Aslaug had ever met them. What Finnegan really meant to reference was Fionn’s overall inhuman personality - his inability to tell lies and his bluntness even in the most dire of situations. He had a great deal of humanity within him after all this time, but there were some things that couldn’t be helped - not that Finnegan disliked that about Fionn. It was his differences, his inhumanity, that Finnegan liked to some extent, even loved Fionn for.

“Stubborn perhaps I may be,” Fionn said with a gentle smile down at his lover, “and yet you love me all the same.”

“That was implied,” Finnegan agreed.

“Kráka will return to us. We will make sure they return to us, no matter what caveats may come with.”

“That’s a promise?”

“Yes.”

Finnegan pulled Fionn into a tight hug. For Fionn to promise something was a very serious matter; faeries did not promise things lightly, and they preferred death over breaking any oath they took. In fact, the same way that Kuria was bound by ineffable magic allowing him to accomplish his orders no matter what, faeries seemed to be bound to keep their word - not out of personal resolve, but out of some mystical force forging them onwards even if it kills their spirit and body alike.

“You know I love you, right?” Finnegan muttered into Fionn’s shoulder.

“I would be a fool not to know of this information,” Fionn chuckled.

“Aren’t they just adorable?” Vaan whispered.

Aslaug looked down at Vaan, who had crept closer to her during the pair’s interaction. “They’re positively radiant,” Aslaug responded. “You should see them with Kuria. If those three got any cuter together, they’d set off an explosion of cuteness and take out the whole world.”

Vaan laughed. “You seem fond of them all.”

“They’re my family. I suppose you could say that I feel responsible for them and their happiness. Which is why I’m just as worried about Kuria as they are, but I knew this was necessary. For all of their sakes, this had to be done.”

Just then, the tunnel Kráka had disappeared into began to rumble. With a flash, the energies in the entire cave seemed to gather at an epicenter - the tunnel Kráka had vanished within. The tunnel entrance flashed white with chaotic and rumbling energy, and Aslaug felt like she was going to throw up just from the intense aura pulling at her very being. She could only wonder how Fionn was doing because she couldn’t focus on anything but herself. Then, as fast as they had gathered, the energies died down. Not only that, it was as though all of the energies in the tunnels had vanished, sucked dry with nothing left. Aslaug could only speculate what kind of force required the energies residing in this whole area, something that drained this mystical cavern dry within seconds, and nearly took Aslaug and her friends with it. Fionn was crouched in the fetal position with Finnegan and Vaan beside him, trying to be comforting despite the fact that they both looked disoriented as well - not as bad as Aslaug or Fionn, but still affected.

Aslaug rose, leaning on the wall for support. ‘ ** _Fáfnir?_** ’

‘ _I’m fine, Aslaug. The force didn’t take me or my energies, but it certainly tried._ ’

‘ ** _If it had succeeded, I doubt our life forces themselves would’ve been excluded from that blast. It’s only the fact that we have unnaturally high energy levels that we even survived at all. Any humans would perish instantly from the rapid magic decompression that just happened. Hell, even strong and blessed humans would have trouble. But our energy levels also proved to be a detriment. It’s kinda like two extreme ends of the spectrum - too much energy and we’d have been drained dry like the rest of this cavern - our energies were like a magnet that were pulled like the rest of the magic in this place; too little energy and our lives would’ve been taken in return._** ’

“Kuria!”

Finnegan ran to the tunnel where Kuria was emerging, wobbly on his feet. His short white hair draped across his face, his clothes were slightly disheveled - which was weird considering his clothes never so much as retained a smudge of dirt or dust.

Finnegan caught Kuria before he collapsed, easing him to the stone floor beneath them. “Kuria? Kuria! Love, answer me! Please!”

Aslaug hobbled her way over and collapsed to her knees, unable to lower herself very gracefully with the exhaustion consuming her body. She rested her hand on Kuria’s neck, feeling a light pulse. “He’s alive.”

“We need to get out of here,” Finnegan declared. “We need a place to recuperate, to rest, to get some food and water in us…”

“It’s okay, Finnegan-san,” Kuria muttered.

“Kuria!”

He helped turn Kuria so that the djinn was resting in Finnegan’s lap. His soft pink gaze hadn’t changed, and despite being drowsy, he still managed to put on a smile that was warm enough to melt the hearts of anyone who saw him.

“This place is safe. Safe from the monsters, safe from the cold and heat and winds and everything else. It has been made into our haven. It just needs to…be taught.”

He pulled his glove off with his teeth before resting his hand on the cavern floor. His hand darkened to his true djinn color, activating both his own magic and that of the cave, as it began to shimmer where he made contact. After a small hum charged up, a pulse of energy was sent across the entire cavern. The area began to shake once more, and then the stones glowed with renewed life.

“What’s going on?!” Vaan exclaimed.

“Beats me!” Aslaug admitted.

The glowing rocks formed rings around each of them, closing in on each resident before sending a shockwave of energy through them all, strong enough to knock even Aslaug out after everything that had already happened.

When Aslaug awoke, she was confused to find that she was in her room.

She tried to recall what had happened before she had passed out to find herself here. She was absolutely _sure_ that she hadn’t found her way back home to her uncle’s mansion in the time after she had passed out basically halfway across the world - or at least it had felt that way with the distance that they had traveled. She felt fine, though. She wasn’t injured or even exhausted, making her doubtful that she had been out very long. She could survive weeks without water or food, but that didn’t mean the lack of sustenance didn’t take its toll on her.

Staring out the window of her familiar home, she remembered being down in the caves with Kuria having returned before he had reactivated the cave and they had all been knocked out.

“Love getting knocked out,” Aslaug muttered, and it was only half ironic.

There were very few things in this world that could knock Aslaug out in a single blow, no matter how weak she was. Though getting knocked out cold was dangerous and she hated not knowing what happened during her unconsciousness, she also felt a surge of thrill at the idea of something powerful enough to threaten her. Sometimes being too strong got old, what could she say?

“Fáfnir, you awake?”

‘ _I’m here, Aslaug. This place appears to have the same energy signature as the cave we had been in._ ’

‘ ** _Interesting. Perhaps it’s remolded itself around us. Kuria seemed to have control over the place; I wonder if we can do the same._** ’

‘ _We still have yet to have our answers as to what Kuria/Kráka experienced when he went down that dark path. Now to have him placing us in a moldable reality in which we have only his trust to rely upon? I don’t like it._ ’

‘ ** _Kuria and Kráka are our friend. And your servant. Surely the bonds of an oath so strong as to bind a djinn would not go unnoticed if it had been severed._** ’

‘ _True. The mansion appears to be guiding us. Let us search for the others._ ’

‘ ** _It’s not very hard._** ’ Aslaug reached out her hand, running her fingers along the wall as a small shimmer of magic appeared. ‘ ** _The mansion almost seems to be guiding us. Like Kuria - it’s as though it’s saying “I am at your command.” I can control it like I can my radius, without words, only feelings._** ’

She walked over to the door to her room and opened it, the door unlocked and posing no barrier. Rather than the hallway she was used to, she found herself in the dining room. Though slightly disorienting, she didn’t question it considering that she was probably in an illusion anyway.

“Finnegan!”

She rushed over to him, letting the door behind her shut. She had an instinct that caused her to close a door behind her whether she intended for it to close or not, but the door seemed to close on its own, as though pushed by a small breeze.

Finnegan was sitting at the dining table where he usually sat, beside where Aslaug would sit next to the head of the table where her uncle and his wife would be. But Finnegan was the only resident in the room, casually eating a small stack of pancakes. When he saw Aslaug, he jumped to his feet, nearly knocking his chair over from the speed he rose.

“Aslaug!”

She pulled him into a tight embrace. If it weren’t for his Io enhancing his body, Aslaug would’ve crushed him with her strength. She’d had to be careful back when they’d first met, but ever since he’d gotten his upgrade she could hug him to the fullest and she no longer had to be careful. He had actually become one of the most durable of her companions.

“Where are the others? Are they awake yet?”

Aslaug pulled back and saw Finnegan’s concerned face. He didn’t seem panicked, just anxious, suggesting that he knew there was no harm that would come to them.

“I haven’t seen them,” Aslaug admitted. “I just came from my room.”

“They should be up soon, hopefully. At least, that’s what this place is telling me and my Io.”

“Yes, this place _does_ seem to be reassuring us - without words. It healed us, offers us food, takes us where we want to go. The only question is if this will last. This mansion is like Kuria and his djinn oath attribute - it will do as it is told, follow the command of its master. But serving the rest of us feels like an order; we are not its masters; its master has simply told it to accommodate us.”

“Maybe, but as long as we’re all okay, right?”

“For now,” Aslaug agreed.

Finnegan looked around the room. “My Io’s never been so quiet, like it’s speechless. Maybe this place is even making _it_ feel comfortable enough to stop complaining about everything.”

“I know, right? Even Fáfnir seems mellowed out.”

“I wonder if it’s the same for Fionn.”

“His other selves, you mean?”

Fionn’s inner self was the woman that he had been born as. However, it was far more complicated than any of them cared to fully comprehend. Because he is both a faerie and a god, his personality can fluctuate depending on the persona he takes up, and there are multiple minds in his head. Unlike Finnegan or Aslaug, he had at least three different voices and personalities in his head, the most primary one being Phoenix.

Phoenix was his true identity, an immortal deity constantly reborn in different ways. He was flippant and rude and loud but also very old and very wise when he wanted to be. Being loud and obnoxious was his way of living in the moment, for what else could an immortal really do if he was fighting the depressing future of eternity? Phoenix had connections to the gods and such, and when it was truly needed, Phoenix’s power was unfathomable. Aslaug knew she had yet to bear witness to the true extent of celestial grace, but she knew it was there within him, and his very… _human_ personality was all a front. She wasn’t sure if she was excited or afraid to see what Phoenix was capable of when he decided to stop playing the humanity act.

Phoenix was the reason that Fionn was needed to renew his blessings on the Faerie court; being an incarnation of Phoenix was the reason Fionn had had such a torturous childhood. Aslaug didn’t know how she felt about that fact, honestly.

The second of Fionn’s inner personalities was Dearil - his original personality, the woman that he had been born as. She was meek and shy but also very curious and intuitive if she was given the chance to be so. She was a bookworm, a quiet observer, and a complacent child. Her heart was full of love, but she didn’t have the strength to stand up for herself most of the time. As a pure-blooded faerie just like Fionn, she couldn’t lie. Phoenix, being a deity, could say whatever he wanted without restriction, but Dearil was bound by her tongue same as any other faerie, and she was honest almost to a fault, which resulted in beatings from her family back before she had become Fionn. Fionn hated Dearil, everything she was, everything she had been, because he saw her as weak. And she was. But she was a part of him, and slowly he was coming to accept her. Dearil had been depressed back in her days, and she had nearly taken her own life - nearly _succeeded_. Only becoming Fionn had saved her, only meeting Finnegan had sparked her renewed interest in life to move forward from her troubling past.

Then, there was Lorcan Dearil - or as they simply called her, Lorcan. This iteration of Fionn was a woman just like Dearil, and looked just like regular Dearil (or as she would be called when compared to Lorcan: Renna Dearil, meaning ‘Little Prosperous One’) as well, with a distinct difference. Lorcan was a combination of Phoenix and Dearil. She was cunning and decisive and sometimes cruel. She was terrifyingly efficient in battle, always coordinated, everything she did she did with purpose, and she often came into conflict with Fionn in the most ruthless of ways - by being just like him, and yet the exact opposite of him. She was fiercely inhuman, combining the wisdom of both a god and a faerie, and unlike kind Dearil or silly Phoenix, she showed no compassion for anything that was even remotely humane.

And she _hated_ Fionn.

She hated that he was gentle and soft, that he had fallen in love and promised his every being to a creature as ephemeral and unpredictable as a human. She hated that he hesitated, that he allowed himself friends, that he did such frivolous things as pretending to be a servant to live in the human world and following Aslaug as his leader - which yes, she _was_ his leader in their small group. Lorcan was supposed to be a masculine name, meaning ‘Little Fierce One,’ and it fit her well. Lorcan earned the title of fierce from those she came into contact with; it wasn’t something they had come up with willingly, it was something that others had started calling her and a title that stuck. When Lorcan didn’t need to demand she be called fierce and that was simply what others took to referring to her as, you knew that she deserved such a title.

So far, throughout their time together ever since Fionn unlocked his multiple personalities with Kráka’s training, Lorcan had somewhat settled down and stopped fighting Fionn for control of their body, but she _could_ take control whenever she wanted and whenever she found it necessary for the sake of Fionn’s - and by extension _her_ survival. Aslaug could only hope that Fionn, Renna Dearil, and Phoenix were enough to influence Lorcan to be passive at worst, maybe even helpful and sympathetic at best. But she was no one that any of them wanted to deal with on a regular basis. The longer Lorcan was free, the more irritable she got.

“Out of all of them, I’d say Fionn and Renna Dearil would be unaffected; with the others calmed down it’d be relaxing for them, really,” Aslaug speculated. “Phoenix would chill out a bit and Lorcan…well, maybe she’d be in a more meditative state than anything else.”

“Isn’t that how she is anyway?” Finnegan returned to his seat and Aslaug took her own across from him. A plate filled with bacon perfectly cooked appeared in front of her, and she officially fell in love with whatever this place was. “Otherwise she’d be bored out of her mind inside Fionn’s…well, _mind_. It doesn’t do her much good to just sit back watching Fionn doing things she doesn’t approve of. She could win a fight against Fionn in his mind if she worked hard enough, I know it. I’m honestly surprised that she didn’t try again when Fionn barely managed to hold her back that first month when we’d unlocked her. It would’ve been so easy for her, and we all knew it, but for some reason…she let him go.”

“Fionn must know the reason, but he’s never admitted it.” Aslaug ate three pieces of bacon at once. It was cooked to her liking - raw as it could be without being fresh off a carcass. “I think she came to slightly respect him, and he, her. Just slightly though. But that ‘just slightly’ was more than ‘not at all.’ They’ve agreed to leave each other alone, and besides, what would Lorcan gain from her freedom? She would have nothing to do that would interest her. Most of the gods don’t come to this world simply because it is so beneath them. Fáfnir? He’s like that. He could take over me, go back to his cave filled with treasures, hiding away in solitude. Maybe he’d have another cult, maybe not, but for the most part he’d be alone. I have a feeling he’s come to like being me, being so human. Fáfnir _was_ at least human in the past. There’s nothing human about Lorcan, but there’s just enough coming from the other parts of her that keep her in check. I doubt things can really get any _worse_ with her by being here. And even if she was provoked into taking over, she’s not one to be used in any scheme.”

“True that. Though she’s a bit of a glass cannon, I’d rather have her than some other enemy we know nothing about and have no connections to.”

“Who are we talking about?!” The doors to the dining hall burst open and Vaan came through with a grand entrance. “Is it me?”

She was wearing an elegant dress of silk and velvet, a smooth blush color that complimented her skin tone and her strawberry-blonde hair that seemed to have been washed, brushed, and curled just slightly. Resting wrapped around her head and hair was a golden diadem encrusted with rose quartz jewels. Unlike Aslaug and Finnegan, who looked relatively the same as when they’d been back at the cave and also in the same outfits, Vaan looked like she’d had a whole makeover on top of being healed up of any damage that had been done. Aslaug wasn’t sure she wanted to know how Vaan managed to transform herself into her royal appearance while they were inside this place. She felt that Vaan was overdoing it; what the hell was up with the diadem and the silky dress? So stupid how well she made it look.

“No, we _weren’t_ talking about you,” Aslaug grumbled, averting her gaze before she started staring like a dead fish. “Sit down and eat some damn food, princess.”

Vaan hummed as she glided over and plopped down next to Aslaug. Her dress just barely touched the floor, allowing a peek of her bare feet when she walked, but for the most part she seemed to hover across the carpet. Her dress was very simple, without jewels or any fancy decorations or styles, and yet it fit her very well. There was even a little bow tied neatly into the fabric at her waist that held the outer layer of her skirts in an elegant position. It had to be a deliberate design Aslaug hoped that her face wasn’t too red.

“Ooo! My mother’s stew! This place is amazing! Where _are_ we, anyway?”

“I assume that we’re still in the cave, it’s just redecorated itself,” Aslaug said.

“Yeah, I know _that_. But it had to have chosen this location for a reason. Back when I woke up, I was in my palace bedroom, and I knew that couldn’t be right, so I did some investigating before I finally found you all here. Where _is_ this? Looks like a mansion, pretty big, I’d say. I went to a place like this, and I think someone said it was big enough to house 200 people at once.”

“That’s for the intermediate level,” Aslaug corrected. “The biggest mansions can properly accommodate 500 people at once. This is my family’s mansion, I would know. Mansions like these are used to house large groups of people for things like meetings - diplomatic and such. Even if they’re not here for us specifically, out of respect and courtesy, we must be ready to handle any number of guests. But since we rarely use all of the rooms, we just let the servants stay in the regular rooms.”

“Do you not have servant quarters?”

“We do, but they’re cramped and low quality. We allow anyone the chance to work for us in exchange for room and board, and in return we run a proper company to maintain our wealth and business. I don’t know what dark deeds may or may not have happened to get my family where it is today, but for now we maintain a good view in the public eye, which is valuable yet very hard to come by in a world where it seems to be every man, woman, and child for themself.”

“That’s really noble of you, Aslaug,” Vaan said with a light smile her way. “You’re really something special.”

She shrugged. “I simply carry on the legacy bequeathed to me by my family - a family that includes my dragon as well. A family given to me by chance. My mother was cast out, and she was adopted as my uncle’s brother in title alone. They hardly knew each other, but he would take on her child when she was no longer able to raise me. That is the man who managed to raise a dragon child, that is the man I aspire to be.”

“You’re lucky to have had such a great father figure. My own father was brilliant, but I hardly knew him. All I can go off of are stories. Once he was gone, my mother and I went through hell. My mother was forced into a new marriage by my grandmother’s insistence and he brought ruin upon my family. My uncles were killed, my mother permanently scarred by guilt, and she had to work with my cousin to get revenge on the man who killed my mother’s brother and my cousin’s father. My mother tried to kill herself, things got so bad. But luckily she washed up on the shores of a kingdom ruled by a man who treats her well. I eventually found out where she went and now I travel back and forth between my grandfather’s kingdom and my new step-father’s kingdom.”

“It must be…entertaining, I suppose,” Finnegan said.

“Oh, it is. I have three brothers now who promise to protect me and my honor. Such cuties when they were little.”

The door to the dining room opened gently - far more kindly than when Vaan had made her grand entrance - and Fionn walked through. He looked refreshed and healthy without a scratch on him, but his eyes looked weary and fatigued. He didn’t look like he hadn’t slept, more like he was simply unaware of everything that was happening around him. He moved to sit beside Finnegan across the table from Vaan without a word.

“Fionn?” Finnegan asked. “Are you okay?”

His demeanor softened at Finnegan’s voice and he reached out to take Finnegan’s hand. “I am unmarred, my love.”

“You’re not having trouble with your Others, are you? Aslaug and mine seem to be okay, but you’re a special case.”

“They do not trouble me, dear Finnegan. You have naught to worry yourself over.”

Finnegan only relaxed slightly, knowing that Fionn couldn’t lie and that if he believed there was nothing to fret over, the odds were high that he was right. Then again, Fionn could only state what he believed. If he truly believed that there was nothing to worry about, when in actuality there was, he could still speak the truth when he said that there was nothing he thought that Finnegan or the others should be concerned about.

“I hope you’re right,” Finnegan said.

“Let us dine until Kráka arrives,” Fionn suggested. “They shall explain our situation.”

The others agreed, Finnegan a bit reluctantly. Aslaug couldn’t blame him. He was worried about both of his loves; it was hard, loving two people. It was hard enough loving _one_ person - worrying about their needs and well-being and balancing trust versus care and consideration for one another. Aslaug found it unnecessarily complicated, and she didn’t see why it was such a big deal. It was cute, seeing Finnegan with his loves and how they interacted with each other. But it was nothing but a show to Aslaug, something that she watched and tried to sympathize with even though she had no experience herself. That’s just how it was.

By the time Kráka finally arrived, all of them had finished their meals and were waiting for only a short period.

“Sorry to keep you all.”

Kráka was transformed, and looking more cheerful than usual. Whenever Kráka came out, they could be cold and sadistic when there was a fight and even when offering advice. They only softened up when it came to Finnegan and Fionn, and when they were with the two of them, you might even mistake Kráka for a human with a different skin tone. They always had limited time whenever they came out, and so they were straight to the point and always stole a kiss or two.

They sat at the head of the table, looking relaxed. Aslaug remembered they had said they were working on sustaining their transformation for longer, but at the moment they looked like they had all the time in the world.

“I suppose I have some explaining to do.”

“Just a little,” Aslaug agreed.

“Well, how should I start? Oh, I know. My name is best translated as Krishna, and though my journey to reach my homeland didn’t go exactly as planned, I do remember much more than I did before. I should reassure you now that I am still Kuria, bound to you, Lord Fáfnir, and by extension Lord/Lady Aslaug as well. You are still my Master, Aslaug, and I wouldn’t wish it otherwise.”

“Well I’m glad of that anyway,” she replied.

“I am still the person that you have taught me to be, regardless of the past I have uncovered and that past that I am yet to uncover still.”

“You’re still you?” Finnegan asked lightly.

“Still me, my gem. Though there are new things you must learn about me, and you will decide for yourself who I am to you and whether I am worthy of your trust. I still do not claim to know everything about myself, and so you must know that who I am may yet grow worse, and the ties that bind me to my past and future may yet lead you to ruin. I know you will say that it doesn’t matter, I know that you feel that way and I can only hope it will be true. I know I am likely overreacting, but that is what you do when you are in love with so much.”

“Well then, get on with it!” Vaan exclaimed. “I’m ready for all the juicy details.”

Krishna smiled. “Very well. During my visit to the depths of this cave, I found that this is indeed a portal to my homeland. Its roots grow deeper than even Faerieland, and it is some of the most potent and controlled magic in this plane of existence. There was a gatekeeper between the realms, who explained what she knew of me and why she couldn’t let me pass - though I wasn’t upset, for she had given me more than I had before: information about myself that felt invaluable. She, in telling my tale, shared memories from the realm itself of who I was, invoking my own memories to return as well. Though we may not remember things, the world around us can remember as well - particularly in the djinn realm this is taken quite literally. Crime is near impossible when the air and earth and metals can tell the story how it is without bias or corruption. This is who I am:

“I am the youngest of the royal family in the djinn community I was born in. Despite this, my father decided that he would pass his kingdom down to me rather than his eldest child. I never understood, my eldest brother never understood, but all of us put up fronts of normality around him. I was a very modern djinn, before. At times I felt rebellious, but I admired my father, loved him, and all of his wives, consorts, mistresses, and children followed suit. Even the most stubborn of my brothers, even his eldest son who felt slightly betrayed by the decision to pass the kingdom down to me rather than him - all of us were bonded by the old man. He jokingly said that one day we would all grow up and leave him all alone. Ironically, that was the last conversation we had before he died.

“I still don’t remember much of the details; I wish I did, believe me. I just remember waking up down in the dungeons, accused of patricide and regicide. One of my brothers said I had confessed, and some of my sisters wept with grief because they themselves had seen many things that aligned with my guilt. Many vouched for my character - relatives and strangers who I’d barely met alike. I was not put to death, especially because I myself could not remember the deed no matter how desperately I desired it. You must understand that in a djinn society, lies make little sense but we may still fabricate them. Lying is very difficult, for we must state that which we do not know to be fact and it simply conflicts with our view of reality. But we _can_ lie, unlike faeries who are bound by complete truth in their tongues. We checked for corruption of some sort, spells that might have overtaken my person without my knowledge or consent, but we found nothing.

“My punishment was exile from all I held dear, and I resolved to use it as an opportunity to investigate my guilt. My eldest brother was, of course, a prime suspect for our father’s death and the framing of my guilt, but he was ruled out when it was discovered that he’d fully intended to do some traveling and explore the world when he didn’t have the burden of a kingdom to rule. This was no lie, and I knew him well enough to know that he had long since overcome his animosity about his position. I did a lot of investigating into every known and unknown person who could’ve possibly wanted this of me and my father, and I can only speculate that in the process I discovered the reason that my father wanted me to rule above all his other children - men and women alike.

“For whatever reason, I am now known as a traitorous prince, a monster to djinn society, and the cause of an irreparable scar on my land and my people. Beyond being accused of my father’s death, something else had happened. Even as I was condemned for the former, my relatives and friends still were skeptical of foul play, and even rumors from strangers knew that there was no solid conclusion. But during my investigation into what had really happened, I suppose I found out more than I was supposed to; I can only guess that whatever happened to make me lose my memories of killing my father happened once again. It could’ve been an outside force who was doing this and framing me, or it could more likely just be me; there is something brilliant yet abhorrent within me, and I must have found why and how I release it. I suspect that it relates to how powerful I am even here in the human world, but there are no definitive answers yet. Whatever the cause, I did something, and now my reputation has been thoroughly sullied. I am a renegade, and I am dangerous.

“Unable to kill me, I was sent to the human world where my power would be nullified, even completely destroyed. It appeared to work, because I woke with no memory of who I was, what I wanted, and what I had done. My djinn form had been stripped from me, leaving a relatively human appearance and nothing much in terms of my memories. A human found me and took me in, a man who named me Kuria and raised me as best he could. Kuria is a vessel with little to no will of his own, no personality, no danger. He needs a master to survive, mentally and physically, and though he develops based on his reactions to the people around him, I still envy the emptiness in his mind at times. That’s why I endeavor to protect him so that he might live a life free of the past that I bear but cannot recall.

“Whatever is happening to me…the time that I cannot recount…I cannot learn what I am missing unless I make it back to my realm and investigate the path that I took, asking the world itself what had happened to me. But to go home would be to challenge the curse of banishment placed upon me. Any who assist me in the task would be condemned, and I myself would face more punishment not from the people but the dimension. Whether or not it wishes for me to learn the truth, I have been evicted from my lands, and I cannot return without consequences to myself and others. The only way for me to be returned is for the highest of power to accept my request to be accepted once more.”

“And who would that be?” Aslaug finally spoke, breaking Krishna’s explanation.

Krishna shrugged. “Dunno. My father was a king, but I’m not sure if whoever took over after him could do such a thing. It’d have to be a power that’s considered celestial even in my world. In any case, the odds are low.”

“So we’ll never know the truth, and you can never go home,” Finnegan summarized.

“There are things I can never know about myself, but I hope that you can still accept that. And do not fret over my own feelings on the matter. I’ve accepted my fate. And there _are_ some bonuses that come with it. I’m now the gatekeeper of the portal to my realm.”

“Gatekeeper?” Vaan repeated.

“This entire place is dangerous for others to stumble upon and possibly take advantage of. The monsters that we encountered on the way here were made into guards naturally by exposure to the energies in this place, but as insects and animals, they had lower intelligence levels than us and only protect using their instincts and not by any direct goal. We were able to defeat them as we would any other creature. I volunteered to be the protector on this side, and the cavern agreed with me.”

“That’s how you’re in control of this place then,” Fionn concluded. “This dungeon is at your command, and in return, you are to use its power to protect both it and the portal to your world.”

Krishna nodded. “Yup. We all are. I allowed you all to be guardians in this place too. There can’t just be _one_ gatekeeper, right? You are my soul-mates; you are basically me. I need your help. And besides, the cavern has accepted us. It will help us as we need it to. And we can use it to our advantage. Already it can summon the foods you prefer, but it can also manipulate space and time similar to Faerie, meaning we can use it to travel long distances, waste or save time, and sneak anywhere we need to. Plus we can change it to our liking. The reason we are in Aslaug’s mansion is because it is the most familiar place to the majority of us - even me. Vaan is the only one without experience in the mansion, but in turn she awoke in her own palace and simply walked here through the doors with the cavern guiding her.”

“What is it called, this place?” Aslaug asked.

“Dolorous Dungeon. Though now we might be inclined to rename it Joyous Cavern.”

“Can we spell it with a ‘K’ so we can call it ‘JK?”

“Why would we do that?” Vaan asked.

“Because it’s amusing. I rarely get to name things, so let’s at least have some fun with it.”

Krishna snickered. “Fine by me. Joyous Kavern. I’ll teach you how to use it.”

“So beyond the Kavern and knowing more about your history, things haven’t really changed, have they?” Finnegan asked. He sounded unsure whether he was happy or dismayed at the prospect.

“I have also learned that the insurgence of energies matching my own are coming from this cavern,” Krishna added. “The initial problem we came here to solve was to find out why I was being targeted. According to the Portal Keeper - the one guarding the bridge between here and my dimension - there are others intending to find and use this place. Other outcasts, those who were forcefully removed or left on purpose. Angels and demons or other djinns like me. They either hail me or fear me - or both - and so they want my answer as to which side I play for. Problem is, I don’t know that _sides_ are my options. Angels and demons and djinns aren’t the problem. It’s violence versus complacency.”

“Why would _that_ be an issue?” Vaan asked.

“The world of the supernatural is vast, Svanhild, far superior to what you humans can fully comprehend. Even an alchemist like yourself can’t grasp at the chaos that boils beneath the surface. I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, princess, but the human world and the supernatural world are constantly at odds - and not just with each other. Monsters of all kinds are out there, and the only difference between humans and the supernatural is that humans have much more potential than us at the expense of less power. They have great enough numbers that they pose a challenge to eliminate completely, which is why they’re still in this race at all. And they have the potential for happiness and kindness and generosity. And cruelty. They are the most diverse creatures in existence, which is why they are valued to some in the supernatural world, for good and bad reasons alike. Angels, demons, gods, djinn, monsters - creatures of all kinds, we either fight or we hide. The world is chaos out there, and the supernatural world wants to know if I’m a fighter.”

“Meaning that you’re important enough a player that they want to know whether they should be with or against you,” Aslaug concluded. “It seems that you have some notoriety in this world despite how careful we’ve all been.”

Krishna nodded. “I still don’t know the full extent of what I am and what I can do. All I know is that I have a duty to protect this place, which isn’t too hard. Beyond that, it means that I probably can’t ever have the answers to my past, only the knowledge I can glean in my future. I am dangerous; I am powerful; people in the supernatural world know this and they want to know which side I play for. Of course, the human world has a very limited perspective on this war that they fight because they are the lowest class, but even some of _them_ know that there are beings beyond their race’s reach and comprehension. And they are fighting back. Only humans ever could. Because of their diversity, they’ll always find a way into the supernatural world. Through alchemy, for example, sorcery, science, etc. As such, even humans will find me abhorrent if they learn the true power I possess. Whatever it is, it is dangerous. And anything dangerous will be feared; anything feared shall be hated; anything hated shall be hunted.”

“We’ll protect you,” Finnegan insisted. “We can hide out, let things die down, maybe stay here. There’s gotta be _some_ way you can just be left alone.”

Krishna smiled sadly. “There are many ways to be left alone, Finnegan, but that is not what I want. I will make my position clear to my fellows: I wish for peace. They will do with that decision what they will. If that means that some will come to fight anyway - and it inevitably will - then so be it. We will be ready. But don’t fret, my little human, there is nothing to be concerned about at present. We may never learn about my past, but if we do, that is a story for another day. Living in peace is not difficult, only boring. I don’t wish to hold you all back, and I remain loyal to Aslaug and Fáfnir as my master. Where you go, I will follow. I just wish to warn you that it will be dangerous. More dangerous than it has been in the past. If you wish to simply settle down and hide, that is Aslaug’s decision to make.”

“That’s no pressure,” Aslaug grumbled.

“I can protect the Kavern from anywhere. From where I protect it is up to where you go, Aslaug.”

“Krishna, I won’t force you to come with me if that’s not what you want.”

Krishna smiled. “How humble of you, Aslaug. I do so love the humanity within this group. Humans are weak, and that is the reason they support one another. You accept, forgive, aid, and will fight to the death to protect your own. That is your strength, and thus are humans capable of prospering in this world where they are left at such a disadvantage. Fáfnir would not hesitate to use me for his own gain, or throw me away without a second thought. He would take charge, take action. But you would leave the choice to me, because you know what it is like to be bereft of choice in your life’s course, and you would not wish that fate upon anyone else if you can help it.”

Aslaug nodded. “I suppose you’re right.”

“Helpless?” Vaan repeated. “I find that hard to believe. You’ve always seemed like the most capable person I’ve ever met, Aslaug.”

“You would think that, wouldn’t you?” She stared up at the chandelier hanging above them and lighting the room. “I pretend to have control in this world where I was born without choice. Choice of my family, choice of birth with a creature constantly in my head, and choice of the dangers that follow. None of them were offered to me, yet I must deal with it. I have control over things that can’t change my past or origins. All I can do is look to the future. We’ll see how far that gets me. In any case, I want to hear your opinion before I make my own, Krishna.”

“Please, can you call me Kráka? Both so that no one will know who I am in passing, but also because…I like being Kráka. It gives me solace. Kráka is who you made me into, regardless of who I was before. As for my decision…” He chuckled softly. “I suppose it’s hard to form my thoughts when I’m so used to Kuria being a blank slate. I’m not sure what I want, but I know that I enjoy my time with you all and that I want our journeys to continue together. Whether that be an eternity spent here, within the Kavern, or out there in the real world, seeking out adventure and chaos and fighting off threats. Even if that means I have to spend most of my life as Kuria, that’s all right. I…lost a lot of things. Even as Kuria, I knew that I had lost things. As both Kuria and Kráka - or Krishna - you have given me a family, a reason to live on through this world that I don’t understand and don’t belong in. That’s why I’m okay with Aslaug as my master, why I leave the choice to her to decide my fate even though I could take back my free will if I wanted to.”

Aslaug chuckled. “That’s a lot of weight to bear, your happiness. But I would do it. I want to travel the world too, Kráka, if that’s all right with you. And everyone else, too. If you’re going to stay with me, then Kráka and I are going to be doing a lot of traveling in our immortal days together - or however long we last, that is.”

“I want to stay with you too,” Finnegan announced. “I know I’m very human, that we don’t know how long I’ll be around - maybe forever, maybe just a few more years. But if I’m going to live my life properly, it’s going to be with all of you.”

“I follow Finnegan and Kráka,” Fionn declared.

“Can _I_ join?” Vaan asked. “I mean, I’ve got my duties and all, but I’d like to at least be _considered_ a part of your family.”

“That’s up to Aslaug,” Kráka said.

Aslaug gave him a glare but turned her eyes to address Vaan. “You can…stay when you want. Not like we’re going to vehemently deny your existence or anything. But _do_ tend to your princesss-ly duties, all right? Last thing I need is the kingdom hunting me down for kidnapping the royal lady.”

“Deal.”

Kráka stood. “All right then.” He rubbed his hands together with a grin. “I suppose that means all four of you get to learn how to control the Kavern.”

“Something about your smile unnerves me,” Aslaug muttered.


	16. Another Kingdom, Another Problem

It was another month before they returned Vaan to her kingdom using the Kavern. By then, all of her staff and family were worried about her. She reassured her mother first that she was okay. Her mother had been frantic, sending her brothers out to search for her. Aslaug decided that she didn’t want any part of being blamed for Vaan’s absence, so she and the others stayed hidden. Vaan complained about it later, but Aslaug countered that the last thing they needed was for Vaan’s family to see Aslaug and her companions as enemies.

“You were made a guardian of the Kavern, Vaan. I think that makes up for some discrepancies you have with my methods.”

“That’s an opinion. I’ve had my fair share of suffering when it comes to the Kavern; you had a far easier time learning to control it than I did.”

“Because I was more magically adept.” Aslaug plopped down on one of the comfy beds that Vaan had around her room. She had no idea why Vaan had multiple beds, but the princess could have whatever she wanted. Not that Aslaug expected Vaan had a lot of company - even from her brothers, since they probably would never sleep in a girl’s room, even if it was their sister’s. “You’re the only one of us that doesn’t have a natural resonance with enchantments - which is why you have to use alchemy to cast spells and such. You need to use items that already resonate with magic rather than being able to do it yourself, and though enough exposure will help you at least a little, you’re still no magic-user. Even Finnegan’s Io helps reinforce every part of him into a supernatural creature of sorts. Honestly, I’m surprised you could harmonize with the Kavern at _all_.”

“Well, I _am_ the daughter of the great Lord Sigurd. He ate the heart of Fáfnir before conceiving me. Maybe I’ve got some dragon in me too, Aslaug. Maybe _that_ explains why I can hear your dragon!”

“Maybe,” Aslaug agreed carefully. Fionn gave her a glance, but Aslaug narrowed her eyes at him while Vaan wasn’t looking. After a stare-down, Fionn looked away, and Aslaug returned her attention to the princess. “You’re leaving to your father’s kingdom then?”

“Yup. My mother and…well, the rest of my family, really, want me to return as soon as possible and not leave for a while. I might’ve worried them a bit with my impromptu adventure.”

“All the more reason that we shouldn’t be involved so that we aren’t accused of kidnapping you. Remember, if you want to be a part of our gang, my word is law. Rule #1: you do as I say, no questions asked. Rule #2: don’t ask stupid questions. Rule #3: stay out of my head, stay out of my powers. Rule #4: don’t get into unnecessary trouble. I suppose I should add on, “No complaining” to Rule #1, huh?”

“But then we’d never have anything to talk about!” Vaan protested. “Complaining is how we united the world, burdened by the same hindrances as our fellows.”

Aslaug snorted. “Right.”

“You wanna come see my mother and step-father’s kingdom? I promise you, it’s beautiful. You might like it.”

“How far away is it?” Finnegan asked.

“Not far, I promise. It’s just a few days on horseback, a week at most if we want to take our time.”

“The distance isn’t the issue, not with the Kavern to help guide us,” Aslaug pointed out. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt. We’ve got nothing better to do.”

“Excellent! I can show you my home!”

Vaan’s home kingdom was indeed brilliant. Her other kingdom was further inland, almost dead center between the channel leading to the English Isles and the sea down beside the desert continent and the Greek and Roman states, but this one was a seaside kingdom on a small peninsula. They were further north than Vaan’s other kingdom, and honestly Aslaug enjoyed the cold. She didn’t feel much of it with Fáfnir protecting her, but Fionn seemed to be unhappy with the chillier temperature and the seaside location. Aslaug did like the change of pace, but she was still starting to agree with Fionn that it was boring. It wasn’t like she didn’t enjoy touring the place, but they’d come there for Vaan’s sake and yet the princess had insisted that they wait a while for her to sus out the details.

“Where’s Vaan, anyway?” she muttered.

“Trying to find an excuse to get away from her family. They’re watching her like hawks.”

“Understandably. Kuria keeping an eye on her?”

Fionn nodded. “He watches the lady to guide her to our position when next she seeks freedom from her obligations.

“Taking my servant now? Ugh, what next? She’ll be stealing Fáfnir himself one day.”

‘ _Don’t jinx it,_ ’ Fáfnir muttered. ‘ _That girl’s got some fight in her, but I don’t think I could tolerate such a docile mindset all the time._ ’

‘ ** _Glad you appreciate me for all I’m worth._** ’

‘ _At the very least, you’re more fun. And I’ve been inside your head since you were a child. I don’t think I could go through another person’s head when I’m so attuned to working with you._ ’

“Wanna go prank her while she’s working?” Finnegan asked.

“You know it,” Aslaug and Fáfnir responded together.

Fionn sighed and rolled his eyes, following them on their journey to the kingdom. The three of them wore their dull traveling cloaks so that they were all matching in an olive green. Being less distinguished would help make it so that if anything happened, no one would be able to immediately identify them - and so that word of their arrival wouldn’t get to Vaan before they had reached her. They’d agreed to let Vaan return to her kingdom and sort things out before they arrived, but they were bored. Even Finnegan was eager to at least see the new area and maybe see Vaan in her natural habitat.

“Kingdoms like this are so advanced,” Aslaug muttered.

“Look, some hunts,” Finnegan observed, standing in front of a board with a list of bulletins for help. “Maybe we could make some money and have some fun.”

“You seem antsy, you know that?” She walked over to join him at the board. “Is it because Kuria’s with Vaan?”

“What? No, no of course not.”

“Are you sure?”

“No. I mean yes. I mean…it’s not like I’m worried about Kuria and Vaan. Kuria’s loyal to you, to us, and Vaan’s a good person. I just…I’m not sure what I feel like right now, okay? I shouldn’t be worried about them for any reason, I just…I don’t like having Kuria away from us. And Vaan too. She’s part of the family too. But…”

“Hey, it’s fine, Finnegan. It’s natural to be worried about one of your lovers.”

Finnegan hid under his hood, but Aslaug knew he was blushing in embarrassment. Though he had accepted both Fionn and Kuria/Kráka, he still got bashful whenever it was mentioned aloud - especially in the presence of others, even Aslaug.

“I _shouldn’t_ worry about him,” Finnegan protested. “It’s stupid. I don’t know why I get so irrationally fearful.”

“Finn, worrying is good. Worrying means that you love him enough to fear losing him. I worry about you all the time, even though I know full well that you and Fionn and Kuria can all handle yourselves. I just don’t want to lose you all because…you’re the best family I’ve ever had. I worry because I love you all, and you worry because you love your boyfriends even _more_ than I love you all as family.”

“Trepidation bears your soul’s intent,” Fionn agreed. He took Finnegan’s hand and held it to his chest. “I grow concerned not for your body, but for your heart.”

“My heart?” Finnegan repeated.

“I do not wish your human heart to know the pain of betrayal, regret, and sorrow. And I fear losing your heart, I fear its beauty losing hold and hardness turning your heart to a stony prison.”

“What could possibly cause that?”

“You are trusting of many, Finn,” Aslaug pointed out. “You trust like none of us ever can because you’re so human. You’re allowed to go out and make friends like none of us would ever want to or ever could. You’re the best at human interaction, and you make friends better than any of us - and you and I are really the only competitors. We just fear what happens if you make friends and you get hurt because of it. You’re the most emotionally vulnerable, but if you get hurt, so do the rest of us.”

Finnegan looked up at Fionn and then down at his hand held against the faerie’s chest. He took Fionn’s hand and pulled it towards his own chest. “No matter what happens, the only people who could truly hurt my heart are you and Kuria. Losing either one of you terrifies me. It’s hard enough worrying about _one_ of you, but worrying about you _both_ …it’s almost overwhelming. And it really shouldn’t be. I shouldn’t be worried, but when I _am_ it just hurts so much.”

Fionn leaned down to kiss him while Aslaug looked around for any observers to make sure no one caught them. It was only thanks to Fionn’s hood that his faerie features were hidden, but all someone had to do was look too closely at the couple to see that he wasn’t human. His glamour could be sustained, but more often than not they didn’t bother. Fionn was known as the prince of the Faerie court, one of the trusted of the current king as well as the one harboring the deity that blessed the court - aka a person not to be messed with. It wasn’t so much the two guys kissing in public that worried her but the fact that Fionn was still considered controversial in the eyes of humans. Honestly she thought the boys enjoyed the risk.

“Please, do not tremble and quake at my disposition or health. If I must remain at your side forevermore to ease your worries, I will do so, whatever the cost I may pay.”

Finnegan leaned forward and rested his head against Fionn’s chest, the faerie closing his eyes and taking in the scent of his human. “Don’t be so…hyperbolic,” Finnegan whispered. “I don’t want you to suffer a price to pay for my sake either. That would make me even more sad.”

Fionn chuckled. “I will do all I can to prevent your sorrow.”

“Well I’m glad of that anyway.”

Aslaug cleared her throat. “While this is all well and good, but I believe we have some spectators.”

Finnegan pulled away from Fionn quickly, lowering his hood and looking around nervously. “Where?”

“Just a few straying eyes, but nothing I want to risk,” Aslaug said. “Besides, I picked out a few hunts for us.” She held up a pile of papers in her hand. “All the fighting-related ones, rather than the errands and job offers that people posted.”

Finnegan let out a heavy sigh, as though releasing the tension in his body. “You and your greed for gold, eh?”

“Oh yeah.”

She showed the pile of papers she’d pulled from the board to him, while unbeknownst to them, someone was watching their interaction closely.

By the time they were heading to their last task, the sun was setting on the horizon. Finnegan had done most of the talking when it came to speaking to kind people about the hunts they posted, while Aslaug did the talking with tough customers. Fionn avoided speaking to anyone, a silent hunter in the background, but while they were talking with their final hunt, the woman who put up the hunt stared at him and kept asking questions about him.

“He’s a hunter, more the silent but deadly type,” Aslaug dismissed.

“Come closer, my dear. Let me see you. What kind of person are you if you have to hide your face from me? Perhaps a danger that would threaten our kingdom? Perhaps a threat the Guard must be notified of?”

Finnegan stepped forward. “You would-!”

Fionn grabbed his arm. “I pose no threat to your kingdom, but I am no fool. Should you have something to say to me, speak now.”

“I wish only to know who I am dealing with,” the woman said. “If I am to be working with you, trusting you with the task of protecting these people, I want to know that your strength does not equal arrogance and that you do not intend harm. A basic precaution, you understand?”

Fionn put his hands to his cloak and pulled it down. Instead of his normal fey features, he looked rather human. It was a glamour, but a strong one. Fionn wasn’t as good at glamours as his counterparts, but that meant he had been working extremely hard to make up for his magic deficiency and build up his reserves. He was still a very handsome man without any facial hair, but his slim and sharp features like his cheekbones, chin, and ears had all been rounded out and his milky complexion had been darkened to be more akin to that of Aslaug’s. His hair had been dulled to match something more human rather than his shimmering hair that was filled with magic - similar to Finnegan and Aslaug’s.

“Satisfied?” Aslaug spat.

The woman simply smiled and stood. “I suppose so.” She walked over to the shelf in her shop where they had met her and grabbed a silver dagger. “Here.”

She tossed the weapon to Fionn, but Aslaug caught it first. “What’s this?”

“The only weapon that can kill your mark. A trickster faerie has been plaguing this kingdom recently.” Finnegan tensed, but in the low lighting of the room under his cloak, he hid it well. “If you think you can truly beat a faerie with trickery from the gods, take up the hunt, but if you don’t believe you are capable, don’t come back to me with your failure.”

“What information can you give us about this faerie?” Aslaug asked.

“He is called Aillen. According to the rumors, he uses his music to lull people to sleep and cause havoc to his heart’s content. He’s best known for arson attacks, so he appears to have fire-based abilities.”

Fionn frowned in thought, clearly pondering the name. The similarities to Fionn felt too deliberate to be a coincidence, but perhaps Fionn recognized the name.

“Any descriptions?” Finnegan asked.

The woman shrugged. “Long hair, fey-like features. No one can properly get a good look at him because any time he comes out of hiding, his music puts everyone to sleep, and plugging your ears isn’t enough to block out the sound.”

“Because it’s magic, yes,” Aslaug agreed. “We’ll see what we can do about him.”

“That weapon you carry is made specifically to debilitate and slay faeries. The only issue lies with finding someone who’s strong enough to stay awake long enough to use it properly. Being dazed and in a sleep-induced state doesn’t help in combat.”

“I met a man who faced a sleep-related attack before. His method was to stab himself in the face with a red-hot spear tip.”

“That sounds painful,” Finnegan said.

Aslaug smirked. “There _are_ nicer ways to handle the situation. Alchemy offers wonders on how to resist magic and even become mostly immune. I won’t say _fully_ immune, because there will always be exceptions, but I _will_ say that I think we can handle ourselves. If you’ll allow us to take our leave?”

“Yes, do go on ahead,” the woman said. “I will give you a fortnight to at the very least check in with me. If you don’t, I will assume you dead and post the hunt once more.”

“Oh, we’ll be done _long_ before that, I assure you.”

They retreated out of the house and headed down the street. When they were finally far enough away, Fionn sighed and released his glamour.

“Are you okay?” Finnegan asked him worriedly.

“Naught but a moment of exhaustion, dear Finnegan,” Fionn insisted. With him being unable to lie, Finnegan took his word for it.

“Have you ever heard of this Aillen?”

“He is known for setting fire to palaces, particularly any palace bearing the one they call a ‘High King.’ He abhors human monarchy and is not affiliated with any court, therefore he is not directly hunted and punished by the fey. He is known as one of the many controversial factors in the supernatural world - a hero to some who resist humans and a rogue to those who desire peace.”

“So, if we challenge him, there will be no negotiation or prison that will hold him,” Aslaug concluded. “It’s rogues against rogues, no laws that will prevent either side from slaying the other. Kill or be killed.” She sighed, twirling the weapon she’d received between her fingers. “Well, I _was_ feeling a bit bored with the normal hunts. An intelligent opponent, a fey no less, and without Kuria as well. We saved the best for last. Not to mention that woman. I don’t trust her.”

“Aslaug,” Finnegan scolded.

She looked at him in confusion and then noticed him motioning towards Fionn. “Fionn? Have you met Aillen before?” she asked.

He nodded. “Once he was a son of my father, but he lost his title of Kingson as penance for his…rebellious nature.”

“Were you close?” Finnegan asked.

Fionn shook his head. “I would hardly describe our relationship as comradery.”

“How _would_ you describe it?”

“I had little contact with many of my brothers, and many I could not match title with appearance. Aillen was a brother I admired but never interacted with. While he remained in the Court, he held his infamous notoriety still. I was never allowed to speak to him. I’ll have no qualms about ceasing his madness.”

“Then we should be off,” Aslaug announced. “We might be back in time for dinner.”

“But where are we supposed to look?” Finnegan asked. “That woman didn’t tell us where these incidents were happening.”

“Well they had to have been happening somewhere in the kingdom, and I think finding the location of a bunch of burnt buildings shouldn’t be too difficult. We can ask the locals about it, see if they know anything that can help us search.”

“The hour grows late,” Fionn announced. “Let us rest before we pursue an investigation. If not for our own sake, consider that witnesses will be taking leave of the day at this hour.”

Aslaug sighed. “I suppose you’re right. Let’s head to the inn.”

They had rented out a room for a whole week at the inn near to the palace, a place that wasn’t too fancy but also wasn’t for normal peasantry. Aslaug had to pay a great deal to get special treatment, which Fáfnir wasn’t too happy about but the staff were. Aslaug made a few casual threats that if she was betrayed the entire inn would be destroyed (it was common in these times for people to get greedy and try assassinating rich guests or simply stealing their belongings and then denying them service), and with that they had secured themselves lodgings. Their room was nice with two beds, a private washroom, and cozy furnishings.

Aslaug stared out the window, Fionn sitting on one of the beds and testing it out. He still found human beds odd, even if he was growing accustomed to them. Most of the time he would just sleep on the floor or the carpet, and Kuria rarely slept anyway, satisfied just staring off into space until he had something to do again. While Aslaug could use her powers to keep herself awake for longer than normal (functioning properly, mind you), that didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy sleeping when she could. Staying awake too long could drive one insane, after all - dragon or not.

“What do you _truly_ know about Aillen?” Aslaug asked, now that Finnegan was out of the room washing up.

“He was known very well as a trickster with the blessings of Loki.”

Aslaug smiled. “I’m sure I can handle that. But there’s something else, isn’t there? Something you don’t want Finn to know.”

He shrugged. “What he knows, what he does not. There is little distinction in my moral disposition.”

“Then why are you so hesitant to speak?”

“I was not allowed to speak to many of my brothers. That does not mean they did not speak to me. Aillen was one of many who taunted me, though he was not gracious with physical might.”

“He was a musician. Meaning that he was more deceptive in his methods, more tactical.”

Fionn nodded. Slowly, his form began to shrink and his clothes shifted so that he was a small girl in a basic red dress whose skirt went down to her knees. She pulled her legs up and leaned against the pillow on the bed, making herself even smaller.

“What happened, Renna?” Aslaug asked.

“My brothers would taunt and beat me,” Renna answered in a small voice.

Her melodious, velvety voice held the enchantments of a fey without her meaning to. Fionn had long since adjusted to speaking like a human, but there were times when he slipped into his faerie speech patterns when he wasn’t paying attention. Even so, he had gotten very good at pretending to be human, and Aslaug had a feeling he enjoyed using slang when he wasn’t obligated to speak like a prince.

Aslaug walked over to the bed and pulled her close, letting Renna’s head fall against her chest. “What did they do to you?”

“Their cruelty holds swift the torments of my mind’s glamours,” Renna muttered. Aslaug knew that it was troubling when Renna started speaking in her confusing yet understandable old English-like words.

“Your nightmares, sweetheart?” Aslaug translated, and Renna nodded lightly.

“Ren?” Finnegan asked.

Aslaug looked up to see Finnegan hurrying over, and she stood, allowing him to slip into her place so that Renna was embracing Finnegan, who ran his hands through her hair and hugged her close. Whenever Renna came out, Finnegan was extremely loving and willing to do anything to make sure she was safe and secure. Renna came out whenever Fionn was being overwhelmed, and Lorcan often followed with her inhuman drive to eliminate that which threatened Fionn. Renna Dearil was there for internal affairs, Lorcan Dearil was there for external ones, and Dearil herself was simply the female version of Fionn who was less comfortable with herself but still capable of growth. Phoenix was always eager to have a chance to party and do things that none of his other iterations were willing to do, as well as offering his wisdom and knowledge from his immortal years. All of them came out at some point or another, and by this point, none of them seemed to mind the erratic schedule and the unpredictable times that summoned them. It wasn’t even Fionn’s mental state, sometimes they just wanted to come out or it happened randomly depending on if Fionn was stressed or if he was safe or if he was perplexed. There wasn’t an exact science, and none of them minded the confusion anymore and just took things as they came.

“Ren, what’s wrong?” Finnegan whispered.

Renna opened her mouth, but she hesitated before she found her voice. “Aillen…”

“What about him?”

“A brother of a court unsightly, unto the court his melodious tunes rang. A veil of deceit he placed across our hearts. To his entertainment, I indulged his pyromancy. To that end, havoc overtook the lives of my family at various points. My brother, Elide…his life’s breath was stolen by mine own erroneous judgment; the trust I provided Aillen would incite the loss of Elide.”

“Oh, my little flame, I’m so sorry.”

Aslaug looked as Finnegan seemed so much bigger than Renna Dearil. Though Renna was the same size as Lorcan and regular Dearil, she always managed to look small and meek, and she enjoyed being wrapped in Finnegan’s embrace. Finnegan didn't usually use nicknames, but Fionn always used them just to make Finnegan blush since he wasn’t used to Fionn’s blunt faerie nature. Now, Finnegan enjoyed using nicknames when he could, and even Lorcan didn’t mind her nickname of ‘My fierce one’ from him or Kuria.

“We’re probably going to be killing him,” Aslaug admitted. “I don’t know what your full feelings on Aillen are, but if he’s causing havoc in the human world, I don’t like leaving that be. I don’t like leaving _any_ havoc be; it’s not just me being prejudiced against supernaturals. If he caused harm to your brother and now he’s causing more harm to humans, he needs to be stopped.”

Renna nodded, snuggled flush against Finnegan in a comfy position. They slotted together perfectly, no matter what form Dearil took. Aslaug couldn’t tell if she was jealous of Finnegan or Renna or both.

“My heart is set,” Renna said. “I know what must be done. Love that which ensnared my heart, born upon a melody of lies, must vacate the catacombs of my mind.”

“No, little one,” Finnegan said. “Love is not something you reject from your heart. It sometimes hurts, but that’s okay. It’s better than not feeling at all. Be compassionate against the odds, cry when it hurts, and even if you do something you don’t like, don’t think that letting your heart turn to stone will make it any better. You do what you need to, but once you’re done, let it out, all right?”

Renna nodded. “I miss Kuria,” she said. “Can we go see him?”

“Do you both need rest?” Aslaug asked.

“I want to rest with Kuria too,” Renna insisted.

Aslaug sighed. “I suppose we could go and pick him up from the palace. It’s pretty late though. We need to be careful, especially with Renna out in the open. You’re adorable, sweetheart, but you’re a little too good for this world. Honestly, that’s not a bad thing, and I wish there were more of you, but for now, we need to keep her safe.”

“I’ll keep her safe,” Finnegan assisted. “And I’m not sure I’ll be needed if Lorcan comes out.”

Finnegan spoke so fondly of Lorcan despite her heartless attitude, and honestly Aslaug found it adorable how Finnegan could unite all the different versions of Fionn as well as the two versions of Kuria. Hell, he even united Aslaug and Fáfnir at times.

“Then we can hurry out. I’m sure that Vaan can deal without Kuria if we just tell her our inn room. I suppose I could’ve just ordered Kuria to pick up Vaan when she was ready and he could’ve stayed with us and just gone off knowing exactly when Vaan needed him to pick her up. Sorry guys. I like having Kuria with us too.”

“Hie we away to the palace of the lady Svanhild,” Renna announced.

Finnegan swept her up into his arms and she let out a small yelp, wrapping her arms around his neck as he held her up bridal-style. She giggled and rested her head at the crook of his neck, both of the content with the position. Both were holding each other tightly and looked like they were seriously considering walking all the way to the palace with Renna in Finnegan’s arms. These two were so adorable, Aslaug almost felt jealous.

“You know, how about we use the Kavern so you dorks don’t have to separate?” Aslaug suggested, opening the Kavern without giving them a chance to protest.

Their time with Renna was precious, honestly, and even Aslaug could appreciate her. Fionn was still Fionn and their main friend, but Renna was such a sweetheart that they enjoyed the time they had with her. Fionn didn’t seem to mind anymore. He’d had to learn to accept the idea that he had multiple personalities, and Finnegan had been the most amazing person in existence accepting every one of his forms.

They walked through the halls of the mansion that the Kavern shaped itself into as Aslaug guided them to the palace. She pushed open a door and they walked out into the garden, beautifully eerie under the night sky. Aslaug always loved the night, hidden darkness and beauty without the light of the sun and the light of humanity. It was quiet and peaceful yet filled with dangerous and docile creatures alike.

The door closed behind them and disappeared, while Finnegan carefully dropped Renna to her feet. She was always barefoot, and she always loved the feeling of grass between her toes - ideal considering they were in the garden.

“Where’s Kuria?” she asked.

“ _Somewhere_ around here,” Aslaug shrugged. “I ordered the Kavern to track him down-”

An explosion cut her off, shaking the ground and covering the area in a red light from a fiery blast above the palace walls.

“What was _that?!_ ” Finnegan exclaimed, having grabbed Renna and draped himself over her to protect her from any flying debris.

Aslaug looked up, running her eyes along the palace walls and then extending her radius and her senses. The palace itself seemed to have been set on fire by an explosion, and the ensuing embers were spreading to the greenery that naturally grew around the palace.

Renna held her hands out and inhaled a deep breath, pulling the fire from the palace into a small condensed ball in her hands, allowing the flame to flare through a few different colors before it finally settled on a regular orange and red color. The fire absorbed into her hands, making them appear like they were hot metal and covered in lava as the effect spread down her body. Her eyes flashed red and her hair lit up like a waterfall of fire - a firefall? - before the light spreading across her faded away. She looked far more rejuvenated, which happened when she absorbed a great deal of fire at a time.

“You okay, firefly?” Finnegan asked.

“Yeah, little firebug,” Aslaug said, ruffling her still-warm hair. Renna was the only one she could call names without it being awkward - at least, cute nicknames that weren’t just terms of endearment like with Phoenix who was loud and obnoxious but still a good friend (nicknames included ‘Birdbrain,’ ‘Loudmouth,’ ‘Beakbutt,’ ‘Featherhead,’ ‘Phoebe,’ and a couple curse words). Aslaug enjoyed being more friendly with Renna when she could; it amused her. “You good?”

She nodded with her adorable innocent smile. “Yes, I am in good health. Though I fear Aillen has emerged prior to anticipation.”


	17. Aillen

“Aillen is here?” Finnegan repeated. “Aslaug?”

“If he’s already setting the place on fire, I assume that means that he has already used his music to put everyone to sleep. It could be everyone in the palace, it could be everyone in the _kingdom_. I assume that we were spared simply because we decided to use the Kavern.”

“What luck,” he muttered.

“Kuria,” Renna muttered. “Hath origins of the deities spared our love the woes of induced slumber?”

“And where is Aillen now?” Aslaug wondered. “He surely would notice your stunt putting out the flames on the palace. He’ll be looking for you, and he’ll be trying to set the place ablaze again. If you continue trying to stop him, he’ll use that to try and locate you. I can help you put out the fires as well. I’m searching for Kuria with my radius now. My vectors aren’t sensing anything right now. That’s odd. Normally I can sense Kuria’s energy signature.”

“But Kuria’s never slept before,” Finnegan pointed out. “He doesn’t sleep. Sure, Kráka does, but not Kuria. Since Kráka is more powerful, I’d assume that even when he’s asleep you can still sense his energy signature, but if _Kuria_ is asleep-”

“-he’s probably not giving off any energy signature because he’s just a husk without us. Oh, that is _so_ interesting! He’s already hard to detect because of Kuria’s state of neutrality, but when he’s lost consciousness, he’s like some kind of invisible mass that has _no_ energy signature. Even inanimate objects like rocks still have an energy signature, but it’s like Kuria is just…not there. I must study this when I get the chance. Anyway, I’ll try sending an order through my radius and see if he reacts. This’ll be a good experiment to see if waking him up with an order is possible. I’d assume that it is, but what about from a distance with just my radius?”

“You sound _far_ too excited at the prospect that Kuria might be in danger somewhere and has been somehow knocked out,” Finnegan said.

“Well it’s _interesting_. And I’m sure he’s _fine_. You know how hard it is to hurt Kuria.”

“And what about Vaan? Who he’s supposed to be looking after?”

“She goes along with the _rest_ of the palace that we’re going to have to protect if we’re stopping Aillen. All of us are fire-poof and if I get close enough, my radius can be used to stop him instantly. Our other personalities should honestly help with the whole falling asleep thing - the Io will protect you, Finnegan, and if nothing else, Phoenix is a god and he’s too stubborn to fall asleep against his will. Fáfnir’s even _more_ stubborn, and so am I, so we’ll pan that out how it happens.”

Finnegan sighed. “Nothing phases you anymore, does it?”

“Nope. Well _some_ things, but not being human and having developed a lot of different powers disconnects you from the rest of the world. That’s why I need you around to keep me human, Finn. You, me, Kuria, and all of Dearil. We need you there to be freaking out and overcautious so that we don’t get overconfident.”

“She speaks the truth,” Renna agreed. “I hold dear thine love and fears of the ephemeral life.”

Finnegan seemed to deflate his worries and the corners of his mouth rose slightly. He leaned down and kissed Renna before chuckling. “You’re still warm.”

She bowed her head, letting her hair fall in her face, but she pushed it aside shyly. “In an ideal manner, my hopes presume.”

He swept her hair aside and cupped her face, forcing her to look up at his eyes filled with nothing but love. “In the best way.”

She smiled and leaned up to give him a quick peck before shrinking down to lean against him and hide her face. She was so constantly shy and kind that Aslaug was close to threatening Finnegan that if he ever hurt Renna, Aslaug would bring down the wrath of the skies.

“You and Renna wanna look for Aillen or stay with me looking for Kuria?” Aslaug asked.

“I don’t think it’s very safe to split up and risk facing Aillen,” Finnegan admitted.

“You don’t think that you can handle him? Or, better yet, you don’t think _Dearil_ will be able to handle him?”

“If she and Aillen have turbulent history, I don’t want…” His arm had unconsciously snuck around Renna’s shoulders and he pulled her close. She didn’t seem to mind being held protectively. “I don’t want anything bad to happen.”

“If anything bad happens, there are multiple versions of her that can come and help. Right Renna?”

She nodded, wrapping her arms around Finnegan’s waist. “I do not fear my heart and that of my other beings. I know of great sorrows in my heart’s past that will not mar my soul henceforth.”

Finnegan sighed and wrapped his arms around Renna, pulling her close. “My _Aiden_ ,” he muttered, meaning ‘My little flame’ in Celtic - it was a male name, but Renna didn’t mind and actually felt appreciative that Finnegan didn’t always call her feminine terms. “You are far stronger than I could’ve ever imagined. I should really stop underestimating you.”

“No, my love. Seek not the sanctuary of knowing all that might befall your heart. A life devoid of thine soul’s adventures, bereft of that which you do not understand and that which you fear - do not seek it thus.”

Finnegan kissed her forehead. “I won’t, firefly.”

Aslaug wandered off, flying up to the room that she knew belonged to Vaan. She landed on the railing to the balcony, looking through the windows. Aslaug carefully crept off the railing, unlocking the balcony doors with her Radial Vectors and pulling them open as she walked through. She started sending out the order through her radius that Kuria should wake up and return to her side.

“Vaan?” she called. “Vaan!”

She didn’t sense anyone in the room, so she turned back and hopped out the window into the roof. She expanded her radius, seeking out Vaan, Kuria, and Aillen. She found that indeed the entire palace seemed to have been put to asleep, but then again a lot of it was already asleep because of the hour, so most were in their beds except the night guards and the palace staff who were still cleaning up at the end of the day and going the extra mile to get things ready for the next morning.

She heard a light hookshot as Finnegan’s grapple was shot up beside her and a moment later he and Renna joined Aslaug on the roof.

“Anything?” Finnegan asked.

“Nothing. It’s not just that I can’t sense Kuria in general, but Vaan doesn’t appear to be here either. Granted I’m just scanning the palace right now. I think we were right in saying that the entire town has been put to sleep. Nothing else but sleep could put Kuria off my radar, and I’d sense if he were completely dead and severed from me.

“Aillen’s deceit knows no bounds,” Renna muttered. “To hide that which we love should beget no challenge for he.”

“Since he hasn’t attacked the palace again and I don’t sense him, he’s probably going to terrorize the town next. And it looks like I was right.”

She nodded in the direction of the kingdom, which could now be seen over the palace walls from the roof they were on. Red lights were overtaking the houses and quickly spreading, and after a moment, Finnegan realized that the red lights were fire, spreading across the buildings and moving quickly to overtake the town.

“We have to get the people to safety!” Finnegan exclaimed.

“Renna, you handle the fires, Finnegan, you handle the people, I’ll go my own way and handle both. Split up and find all the people you can and spare as many buildings as possible. There’s nothing like losing your entire home - and everything that resides within - to fire.”

They nodded. Renna grabbed onto Finnegan as he lowered them to the ground while Aslaug jumped down on her own. They hurried to the town and split up like Aslaug planned. While she wasn’t as skilled as Renna at fire magic, she and Fionn were about equal in their prowess at the moment, so she at least knew how to summon fire, how to concentrate and redirect it. She began salvaging every house she could, expanding her radius and overtaking a great deal of the houses and buildings that were set ablaze and dousing them with her powers. Beyond varying degrees of singeing, they were going to be fine.

Renna and Finnegan ran down the street, Renna pulling the fire from the buildings and Finnegan helping her with mobility and rescuing anyone who was trapped in the earlier buildings that had been set alight where half the structure was coming down already. With all of the residents forced asleep, Finnegan had to act fast to save them since they couldn’t help themselves. By the time all the lights had been dimmed to mere embers or completely extinguished, Renna appeared exhausted and yet energized all the same. There was still no sign of Aillen.

“Are you okay?” Finnegan asked.

Renna nodded. “I fare well, my love. Yet I fear I bear witness to a crime unforgivable.”

“What?”

There was a small bundle in the faerie’s arms, something she seemed to have picked up at one point while Finnegan had been in one of the buildings helping put out the fires and get the people to safety.

“What’s that?” Finnegan asked, already dreading the answer.

“A child,” Renna confirmed. “Just a babe left to die. The slumbers of dusk obscured the crime of its parents.”

“How’d you find it?”

“I use my eyes,” she answered, her tone laced with sarcasm.

“Lorcan?” Finnegan asked.

Dearil smiled. “Indeed. I believe it is time we end this charade with Aillen.”

She passed the baby in her arms to Finnegan, who took it carefully before Lorcan abandoned him, sprinting away as though she knew precisely where she was going.

“Wait! Lorcan!”

“I shall return come the dawn at latest! Guard the child, locate our allies! _I_ shall dispose of Aillen!”

“But Lorcan-!”

But she was out of sight before Finnegan could finish his protests.

Lorcan jumped, launching herself above the rooftops in a single bound and sprinting across the buildings. She knew exactly where Aillen would be when laying siege on a human settlement: at the very best view. Lorcan ran to the edge of the kingdom, the great wall around the borders of the entire place where one could watch the entire settlement burn. And where he no doubt knew Lorcan would be able to find him. There were many people and creatures who were capable of stopping Aillen’s fire, but only someone who truly knew him would know where he would be; he knew how not to get caught by common folk.

Aillen said that he always expected someone to catch him so that he could never be taken by surprise, something that Dearil had taken to heart as she’d grown up paranoid that everyone always knew about what she had to hide. At first, it had been detrimental to her mental state, but later on it had taught her to hide surprise and appear more formidable to her enemies because she always had a plan for when she was discovered - sometimes she didn’t have to use them, but having a plan naturally forming in case of failure never hurt her and gave her a better reputation among those who realized just how prepared she was.

Lorcan Dearil abhorred Renna, she abhorred Dearil, she abhorred Fionn, and she was pissed off at everything involving Phoenix. But even when she wasn’t in charge, she was the part of Dearil that kept her alive - her wisdom and wit and ruthlessness and inhumanity. While she was here, she was their best chance at defeating Aillen. Lorcan didn’t trust Dearil to be able to do it when Lorcan’s influence was shared by little meek Renna, and Lorcan personally believed Fionn was just a wimp and that even Dearil could do better than him. Her opinions could and would be argued, but she stood by her beliefs, unwavering.

Lorcan launched up and landed on the kingdom’s border walls. There were multiple guards that were knocked out, slumped at their posts or along the wall where they were patrolling. Lorcan stepped past them as she made her way along the wall, looking for Aillen.

“Aillen.”

Aillen was a lithe man, sharing the traits with the gentry faeries of the court. He had a mane of wild hair that resembled a lion’s. It wasn’t as bright as Lorcan’s, but it was still an unnatural red, with black highlights. Honestly, Lorcan had thought that it was cool when she (Dearil) was young, and she even found that it was interesting now. Aillen was sitting on the edge of the wall, one leg dangling over the edge and the other pulled up so that he could rest his harp against his knee. He plucked the strings of his instrument lightly, resting his head on his knee with his eyes closed as though mesmerized by each note. Dearil had always loved the passion Aillen seemed to put in his work.

But even _that_ could be - and most likely _was_ \- just a lie to get the people around him to sympathize with him.

It was Aillen who could charm his way through the court and impress diplomats and guests and especially their father, but who was, in actuality, one of the most brutal, cunning, and cruel faeries in the whole court. Dearil had only seen his façade for a long time, while her sister had forbidden her to interact with Aillen. But she had. He taught her about being a fire-user and trained her in the use of her power, impressing her sister who had thought it had been Dearil on her own who was learning. For a moment, Dearil had thought her life was looking up. And then she had seen the truth behind Aillen, and she had vowed never to trust again. Dearil’s heart had hardened, while at the same time she had been weakened and fallen to the lowest she had ever been.

“Aillen, what brings you to this place?”

“Shh, my Dear,” Aillen whispered, plucking the strings of his harp. “This melody has not yet reached its crescendo. Though we must counter a great deal of rubato, this tune shall come to its conclusion.” He stopped his playing, and the air seemed to clear - it seemed far more empty.

“You ruined my life, Aillen.”

“No, I _saved_ you, little sister. Look at how far you came thanks to my assistance.” Aillen hopped down from the stony rail, his wild hair draping in front of his shoulders and cascading down his chest. “What might you have become without me? You would have been safe, and you would have been boring. You would have been complacent.” He held up his harp, resting it against his chest with his head lying on a spot at the top that seemed to have been padded specifically so his chin could sit comfortably. He plucked a few strings and made a simple melody like background music. “Do not be foolish, Dearil. I was not the only one to wound your heart, and my actions led you down the path you lie on today. You cannot change our past relations together, and it is simply foolish to hold a grudge that would limit your mental potential. So you did not come here out of vengeance. Then why did you truly come?”

“To dispose of you,” she said honestly, throwing her hand forward and causing a blaze of fire to stream from her palm, forming into the shape of a sword. The flames formed the final tip of the sword, pointing straight at Aillen; Lorcan swept her sword behind her to take up a battle stance. “You have caused a great deal of harm to this human colony, and I am here to halt your progress permanently.”

Aillen sighed and turned away from the city, plopping down on the ledge again as he continued plucking his harp. “Tell me, dear sister, what has occurred during our time apart?”

“I do not have time for your games. You have harmed an ally of mine, and I intend to restore him with the utmost of haste.”

Lorcan threw her sword towards Aillen, but predictably he disappeared, his illusions warping sight and magical senses as Aillen appeared to be sitting further back on the wall than where Lorcan’s sword had pierced. Lorcan was not surprised by her failure, but she knew that she wasn’t going to let Aillen have his way.

“And you’ve not a care that your attack failed. Why would you be so immune to such an insult to your pride? My grooming, of course.”

“The trials of my past, as you say, are naught I can change, and so your empty words do not dissuade my heart’s desires.”

Aillen halted his tune, the abrupt halt almost as powerful as a punch because he seemed to have sucked the oxygen out of the air. He looked up at Lorcan, his gaze everything a faerie was made of - uncertainty. There was no way to read his expression as positive or negative, amused or annoyed, entertained or bittersweet.

“Tell me, there is a woman in this town plotting my downfall. Have you met her?”

“I have not, but I know my comrades have.” Not a lie; Lorcan was not the one present when Fionn and the others met that woman. “Why? What connections do you have with her?”

Aillen’s eyes darkened, and the amusement and mystery faded from his eyes. “I am not the true enemy, dear sister. Allow me this: I will make you a deal, Dearil.”

Meanwhile Finnegan rushed through the streets, still empty of anyone despite the panic that half the kingdom being on fire and then extinguished should incite. There were a few people sleeping on the ground as he ran, meaning that he was closing in on Aslaug who had pulled people free of burning buildings and was rude enough to just leave them sleeping outside (rather than returning them at least into their houses if not their actual beds since there was no way she could know who belonged where).

“Aslaug!” Finnegan called.

He felt a large wave of relief at seeing someone who was actually awake. He almost felt like he was in a terrifying ghost town when there was no one else, and being all alone was almost scarier than facing a monster because at least he knew what he was facing. The only person (that he knew, at least) that was awake, was Aslaug. If that wasn’t Aslaug - or possibly Vaan or Kuria - then Finnegan was probably going to have a heart attack. That meant it was either Aillen or it was someone powerful enough to have resisted the sleeping music of Aillen, which was no one that Finnegan wanted to face when he had an infant in his arms. Honestly, it was nothing he wanted to face anyway when he was on his own. His friends empowered him, but when they were gone, he couldn’t help his shyness no matter how much progressed he’d ever made.

“Finn!” Aslaug called. As he got closer, he was more confident that it was Aslaug, easing some of his worries. There was a chance she was an illusion or an imposter or charmed by music and mind-controlled or something, but beyond all that (and maybe more since Finnegan was paranoid as ever) he had Aslaug back. “Are you okay? Where’s Ren?”

“Lorcan,” Finnegan corrected. “She went off to stop Aillen. She seemed to know where she was going and I couldn’t really keep up with her because…well, look.”

He held out the bundle in his arms and Aslaug’s eyes lowered in surprise. She reached out a finger almost fearfully and pushed the blanket around the baby aside so that she could see its squished baby face sleeping in Finnegan’s arms despite how he’d been running through the city. It was probably under the sleeping spell as well, unless there was something that made babies immune or something dumb like that.

“You have a baby,” Aslaug recited.

“Yup,” Finnegan muttered.

“I didn’t know you and Ren could _do_ it that fast.”

Finnegan turned bright red and would’ve tried punching Aslaug (she was a dragon, it wouldn’t be very effective and his Io would only allow him to get her attention rather than being completely unaffected entirely) but he had a delicate package in his arms and he didn’t want to risk anything.

“It’s not _ours_ ,” Finnegan stressed. “Ren found it while we were doing some rescuing. She didn’t give me a lot of information before we split up, but…she seemed confident that the baby had been abandoned.”

“So…what? What are _we_ supposed to do about that?”

“ _I_ don’t know! Ask Ren when she gets back! Ren probably wanted to find it a new home.”

“Well _we_ surely can’t keep it. _None_ of us can raise a baby - _I’m_ a kleptomaniac dragon, _Fionn’s_ quint-polar, _Kuria_ might as well be a brick wall, and Kráka is a ticking time bomb who has done unspeakable crimes that we don’t know the full extent of!”

“I wasn’t _saying_ that we should _keep_ it…” Finnegan said innocently.

Aslaug gave him a small glare. “No, Finn. Anyway, come with me. I think I’ve found Kuria and Vaan.” He followed her into a large barn. “Looks like they were visiting this place, though we’d have to ask them why. This place doesn’t seem to be a market or anything.”

“Maybe it’s some stables,” Finnegan suggested. “Vaan has horseback riding lessons and she likes to go riding sometimes.”

“Yeah, but why come _here?_ There’s gotta be some royal stables that she can park her equine in.”

Finnegan shrugged. “Hey, I wasn’t saying anything definitive. Like you said, we can only ask them.”

“Over here.”

Aslaug led Finnegan over to a barn stable for the horses, where, in a pile of hay, two figures laid.

“Kuria!” Finnegan exclaimed.

He rushed over to the white-haired djinn and rolled him onto his back. Kuria had never slept before, so it was odd to see his eyes dosed and his face so relaxed.

“Here, hold this,” Finn ordered.

He shoved the baby into Aslaug’s arms to her surprise as he held Kuria and examined him for damage. He didn’t appear to be hurt, but Finnegan couldn’t feel a heartbeat or feel his breath.

“Do djinns need to breathe?” Finnegan asked frantically.

“How am _I_ supposed to know?!” Aslaug exclaimed, still panicking over the child in her arms. “You know Kuria is a special case!”

Aslaug worried she was going to hurt the small human in her arms. It wasn’t like she hadn’t held a baby before, but this wasn’t one of her cousins or brothers and sisters. Her uncle would give her hell if she ended up hurting her family, but Aslaug had been confident she could handle herself for a few minutes. This child wasn’t her family and there was no telling how long she’d have to deal with this baby. Something about that scared her.

Finnegan was too distracted to notice her dismay as he pulled Kuria into his arms and swept the white locks of hair draping over his eyes to the side. “Kuria?”

The djinn didn’t respond even as Finnegan began to shake his shoulders. In all honesty, he was mesmerized by the sight of a sleeping Kuria.

“Kuria, wake up!” Aslaug shouted.

Pink eyes snapped open almost painfully abruptly. “Yes Master!” he shouted, his voice slightly raspy.

“Kuria!” Finnegan exclaimed, pulling him close and cupping the djinn’s face. “Are you all right?”

“I am in no harm, Finnegan-san,” he assured the human, his voice slowly returning to normal and his eyes focusing.

Finnegan sighed in relief and leaned down to kiss the djinn. Though Kuria couldn’t feel many, if any, emotions, he and Kráka still shared a body and mind to some extent; Kuria _was_ , after all, just Kráka stripped of his power, mind, and will. Kuria’s eyes faded to red as Kráka peeked through but didn’t fully emerge and then his eyes closed to return the kiss.

“Nothing bad happened, right?” Finnegan asked, sweeping his hands across Kuria’s body to check for damage. His eyes faded back to pink. “No mental harm either from the music?”

Kuria shook his head. “The music was not meant to harm, only disable.”

“How were you even affected?” Aslaug wondered.

“I suspect the enchanted melody was built to counter supernatural creatures as well.”

“Well _that’s_ not good. But _very_ interesting. Maybe we can steal this instrument of his and see if we can have it for ourselves. Or does it require his particular skill and magic techniques? Either way, I’d like to have such an ability for myself.”

“I honestly can’t tell if that’s the Fáfnir in you or just you, Aslaug,” Finnegan said.

“Both, really. And you know that when _we_ agree, things get hectic.”

Finnegan sighed. “Kuria, is it possible to wake up Vaan as well?”

Kuria pulled off his glove and rested it on Vaan’s forehead, his hand darkening from the summoning of his magic. “The lady Svanhild’s slumber is forced upon her. She does not even dream. Her consciousness is forced into hibernation.”

“So?”

“Allow me three minutes.” He closed his eyes and began concentrating.

Aslaug felt a squirming in her arms and she remembered that she had a baby in her grasp.

‘ _Can we eat it?_ ’ Fáfnir asked.

‘ ** _NO, Fáfnir,_** ’ Aslaug sighed, rolling her eyes. Aslaug had multiple siblings younger than her, and it wasn’t the first time that Fáfnir had suggested infanticide. Honestly, this was what she had to deal with ever since she was born.

“Finn, could you please…?” She held out the bundle in her arms.

He took back the baby carefully, looking amused. “Not good with children, Aslaug?”

“I’m _fine_ with children, just not ones that aren’t related to me. At least those I can just hand back to their parents or someone more responsible than me. I don’t like little people that I can break - or that Fáfnir can break.”

“You won’t break it, Aslaug. I know you well enough to know you’d never let something like that happen.”

“You have way too much faith in me and my dragon.”

“Maybe.” He rocked the baby smoothly in his arms. “But that’s my choice. You’re my best friend, Aslaug, and technically my wife. I wanna believe in you, so I will. Nothing you can do about it.”

Honestly, Aslaug was flattered, but she merely crossed her arms and muttered, “Whatever.”

They heard a light groaning and Aslaug glanced down to realize Vaan was stirring.

“Vaan?”

The princess rolled around in the hay, seemingly trying to get more comfortable, before she realized she wasn’t in her bed.

“Huh?”

“Rise and shine, princess!” Aslaug said loudly.

The baby in Finnegan’s arms broke out crying, which combined with Aslaug’s outburst succeeded in fully waking Vaan.

“Aslaug!” Finnegan scolded.

She shrugged. “What?”

“You can’t just wake a baby like that!”

“I was _going_ for Vaan.”

“Intentions don’t matter when the deed is done.” He looked down at the small infant in his arms. “Hey little one. I’m sorry. She’s just rude.”

He carefully rocked the baby in his arms while reassuring it that Aslaug wasn’t always like that, as though that would make a difference. Babies didn’t understand language at that age, Aslaug knew for sure (from her own prior experience with her siblings) and she knew that maybe, yes, you had to be gentle with babies and maybe she shouldn’t have shouted, but Finnegan didn’t have to paint her like such a bad guy! Sure she _was_ a bad guy, but that didn’t mean Finnegan should be going around telling babies who didn’t know all the details about it! Besides, this was Finnegan, the purest soul Aslaug knew. He shouldn’t be badmouthing her to infants! That’s just mean!

“What the…?” Vaan rose, rubbing her eyes, and realized the source of the crying baby was in Finnegan’s arms. “Huh? Is that…? How long have I been _out?!_ ”

“Oh, be quiet,” Aslaug hissed. “You’ve been out for a few hours at most. Renna just found a baby and threw it at Finnegan while we were searching for you and Kuria.”

“Renna?”

“Oh, did I forget to explain Fionn’s multiple personalities? Well, either way, all you need to know is that Renna is even sweeter than Finnegan and she found an abandoned baby and here we are.”

“Where _is_ this Renna?” Vaan asked.

“Oh, she’s Lorcan now, no doubt. Went to try and dispose of the faerie that’s responsible for putting your entire kingdom to sleep and trying to burn it to the ground.”

Vaan sat up straight. “What?!”

“Don’t worry, we managed to minimize the damage,” Finnegan assured her. “Barely a few singed houses at worst.”

“Kuria, what were the two of you doing to have ended up passing out in a barn?” Aslaug asked.

“Lady Svanhild desired to ride horseback to this location. She requested I tell her more about you, Master, and so I told her-”

“Uh, okay, so how’s this Lorcan thing work?” Vaan blurted.

Aslaug’s eyes narrowed. “Kuria, continue.”

There was a bang as the doors to the barn burst open and a small figure strode through.

“Lorcan!” Finnegan exclaimed, passing the baby to Kuria who looked down at the bundle in his arms in confusion. Finnegan rushed over to Lorcan, who stared up at him not with resentment, but also not with gratitude or relief. “Are you okay? You aren’t hurt, are you? What am I saying? That’s a stupid question. That guy was a pyromaniac, and you’re immune to fire. He didn’t have any other weapons besides fire, right? I mean, I know you can handle yourself in a fight, but still-”

Lorcan grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him down into an abrupt kiss, effectively shutting him up. “You talk too much,” she said simply before walking past him to the others.

“Finn has a point though,” Aslaug said. “Did your little hunt go well?”

She nodded, tossing something in her hand over to Aslaug. Aslaug caught it to reveal an intricate harp, made beautifully with clear care and precision and maintenance. It was no doubt faerie work, if her time in Faerie had taught her anything about faerie-based creations.

“Is this…?”

“It is Aillen’s, yes. His genuine instrument.”

Aslaug felt giddy inside, and she knew that most of the feeling was from Fáfnir (but not _all_ of it). “Yes! You’re the best faerie in existence! Careful Finn, I might just steal her off of you.”

Lorcan frowned in her normal frowny frown way. “The odds are not in your favor.”

Aslaug waved passively. “Oh, I know. You, Finnegan, and Kuria/Kráka are cute enough together. Kuria, give her a cute, loving kiss.”

“What? _No!_ Would you no- _umph!_ ” Kuria had already walked over and leaned down for a kiss before Lorcan could finish her protest. By the time Kuria pulled away, Lorcan was blushing and working to control her breathing. “Would you _not_ toy with the fact that you have full control over Fionn’s lovers to my detriment?”

“You don’t seem too broken up about it,” Aslaug shrugged. “Anyway, I assume this means that Aillen will not be a problem anymore?”

She shook her head. “He won’t be causing further harm to this kingdom or any other human colony.”

“Did you kill him?” Vaan asked.

She shook her head. “I exiled him back to Faerie in exchange for immunity to my brother’s court and the confiscating of his instrument. He can make another one anyway, but the personal item is still worth a lot to him in the sense that his experience with it cannot be replicated - sentiment holds much value. No more harming humans and he won’t get locked up by the court.”

“I thought you said you were going to dispose of him?” Finnegan said, rejoining the group behind Lorcan. He wrapped his arms over her shoulders and rested his head on hers, which she grumbled about and crossed her arms, but she didn’t try to extract herself from his grasp.

“I disposed of his presence.”

“Good enough for me,” Vaan said. “You all said that you spared my step-father’s kingdom much damage? For that, I am grateful. Please, return to the palace with me. You will be hailed for your efforts.”

“Hailed?” Finnegan repeated. “I don’t wanna be _hailed_ , necessarily. It _would_ give us an excuse to visit your palace though…”

“Will we get food?” Aslaug asked.

“The hour is late, but we can hardly deny our saviors a meal,” Vaan admitted.

“ _I_ did most of the work,” Lorcan felt the need to point out.

“And you will be properly compensated. You’ll have rooms to stay in if you so desire.”

“I’m sold,” Aslaug declared.

“We might as well inform the inn that we won’t be needing our room,” Finnegan said. “Hand me your keys and I’ll go return them.”

“Don’t allow them to give you a refund,” Aslaug said, tossing over her key to him. “We don’t need the money.”

He nodded and headed out. “I’ll meet you back at the palace.”

“Master? The little human is hungry.” Kuria looked down at the baby in his arms like it was a rock he was studying.

“You’re not holding it properly!” Vaan exclaimed, moving to readjust the baby and Kuria’s arms. “You’ve gotta support its head. Don’t allow it to be shaken or to take any impacts. All right?”

“Yes Master,” Kuria responded.

“You said you found it where?”

“Abandoned,” Lorcan said. “Renna couldn’t leave it behind.” She reached into her dress pocket and dug around before pulling out a small piece of parchment. “A note was left with it, though Renna failed to mention it out of the kindness of her heart.” Lorcan seemed unamused.

Aslaug took the note from Lorcan and read it. ‘ _Let the demon die._ ’

“What’s _that_ mean?”

Vaan snatched the note and her eyes skimmed over it. “Demon?”

“It is the half-child of a demon,” Kuria informed them.

“Guess that means it’s sorta related to you, eh?” Aslaug said. “Guess it’s got some warlock genes. No wonder the mom didn’t want it.”

“What’s so wrong with it?” Vaan asked. “Sure it’s got some demon blood, but that doesn’t necessarily define who it’s gonna grow up to be.”

“How open-minded of you,” Lorcan drawled, her voice deep and monotone.

“Children like that are often born with special features, and their heritage grants them unnatural power,” Aslaug explained. “There are many half-demon creatures across this land. Humans treat them same as the other supernatural creatures of this world: differently. We are not human, but what is half human is dangerous. Humans are not bound by their nature; they have the potential to grow into anything regardless of how they are raised and what genes they are born with. Sure, those definitely contribute, but the point is that there are no hard and fast rules binding them. Now take that dangerous potential and bolster it with power beyond that of a normal human, and you’ll find that even supernatural creatures are wary of half-breeds. That’s precisely why many of them are born: to spite other races, to make them afraid. And on rare occasions they are born of love, but if the human is the bearer of the child, she will have low chances of surviving, and the pregnancy itself will probably mutate her if she _does_ survive.”

“How do you know all this?” Vaan asked.

“I spend time in the supernatural world too, you know.”

“Well we can’t just leave it to die before we figure out who it’s going to be. Let’s bring it to the palace with us.”

Aslaug sighed. “Fine, but it’s not my responsibility.”


	18. Supper, a Survivor, and Soul-Mates

They headed to the palace, allowing Kuria to hold the baby. He practically hovered across the ground as he took the order not to shake the baby to heart - not that it was unexpected of him. By the time they made it back, the guards were falling over themselves to get Vaan inside. Apparently, her parents had freaked out and her brothers more so when they realized that everyone in the palace had been put to sleep by magical means and Vaan was still out there.

“They were on the verge of going after you, my lady,” one of the guards said.

Vaan sighed. “Thanks for keeping them from blowing their lids at least, Ludo. Guys, this is Ludovico, one of my good friends in the Guard. She’s been working here since I can remember.”

“I already sent your brothers word of your return,” Ludo said. “The king announced that a dinner was to be served for you, and after that, the schedule would be as normal. Tomorrow would be a day of recovery and he’d announce the situation and plan reparations.”

“Well _these_ are the valiant ones that stopped the attack on the kingdom, so would it be alright if we introduced them at dinner?”

“Of course. I’ll have the servants prepare seating for them.”

“Oh, and, uh…we have this baby we found abandoned, and…”

“Understood. I’ll have the nursemaids tend to it while you attend dinner.” She carefully extracted the baby from Kuria’s arms, Kuria not protesting in the slightest because he hadn’t been given orders to. “If you’ll excuse me.”

“Yes…of course, Ludo.” Ludo bowed out and retreated as Vaan sighed and shook her head. “Hopefully the baby won’t cause the nursemaids any trouble. My brothers should be down here soon enough to greet us. They’ve just reached adulthood, so forgive them if they boast a bit about how great they are.”

“How much younger than you _are_ they?” Aslaug asked.

Vaan shrugged. “Well Erp is a little older than me, but Hamdir and Sörli are…give or take, around a decade younger than me. Well, maybe less than that. I was young when my mother went through…her trials, but I was old enough to remember the harm it caused her. Hamdir and Sörli are pretty strong warriors, but they are also a bit quick to the punch, if you know what I mean. Erp is smarter, though he often speaks in riddles, and he isn’t very confident in himself. A lot of people mistake it for cowardice, but I know better. Erp is from a previous marriage before my mother, so in a way we’re both connected as the half-siblings from my mother and father’s different sides, but that doesn’t mean we’re treated as anything less than our parents’ children. My step-father is King Jonakr, and he cares for both my mother and I. He is a very kind man, so don’t do anything that would offend him. My mother, Gudrun, would probably not be alive if not for him. _Please_ try not to cause trouble and embarrass me in front of my family.”

“I’ll try my best,” Aslaug muttered.

“Yes Master!” Kuria replied diligently.

“I am well acquainted with the proper mannerisms required in a formal setting,” Lorcan muttered. “Where is Finnegan?”

“Hm…I asked to have him let in if he arrived. Let’s check the front gate just in case. I’m sure the guards will notify us if he’s arrived.”

Meanwhile Finnegan headed to the inn after parting with his fellows and returned their key, explaining that they had found a relative to stay with (not _entirely_ a lie). He made sure that they kept the money they’d paid for the whole week and he even tipped them for the inconvenience. None of them could really complain about that, and Finnegan made sure that the owner of the inn knew that he was genuinely being so gracious. Finnegan also made sure that he didn’t abuse the money and used it to pay his staff extra just that one time rather than docking their pay to compensate for the tip or just keeping all the money for himself. With a not-so-subtle warning against foul play, Finnegan left the inn and headed towards the palace.

Along the way, he saw some people waking up, oblivious to the situation that happened to put them to sleep. Finnegan remembered the woman that had posted the hunt for Aillen in the first place. He vaguely wondered where she had gotten a weapon designed to slay a faerie and how she seemed to be the only one who knew about Aillen and his attacks in the first place. They hadn’t done any asking around, but during their time there no one had been fretting over a faerie attacking their city. With how easy Aillen had done his work, there would have surely been some kind of outrage or fears about him.

Finnegan sent a note through the Kavern to the others just in case that they could find it if he didn’t return to them. He hated sounding paranoid, but then his group had complimented him on being overcautious in case anything happened. These were dangerous times, after all; it was highly likely that you could get killed by anyone you pass by or interact with.

Finnegan considered using the Kavern to go and get the others - it’d hardly be a problem for them to come out and help him inform that woman about their success. But then, it wasn’t a large task; it’d probably take a few seconds at most. While going back and forth inside his head during his walk, he ended up at the location anyway. No reason to get the others now.

He took a deep breath. Just go in, say that Aillen has been dealt with, leave.

He pondered how sad it was that he still needed to psyche himself up before speaking to strangers. He wasn’t a child anymore, dammit. He had supernatural powers and stuff and an Io that would protect him. Speaking of his Io…

‘ _It_ is _sad that you need to pep-talk yourself into a conversation, but at least you’ve made progress, kiddo. You’re still pretty weird, but enduring._ ’

‘ ** _Gee, thanks._** ’

The woman worked in a shop, and the sign read that she was still open. With no other excuse to turn away, he made his way inside.

“Excuse me? Ma’am?”

“Back so soon, are we?” her voice called. She seemed to emerge from the shadows of her shop, lit by only a few small candles. Yeah, Finnegan was already starting to regret this.

Shoving his doubts away, he gathered his words. “I just came to inform you that Aillen has been disposed of.” He made sure to quote Lorcan just in case. “My comrades finished him off and by the insistence of the princess they were invited to the palace. I just wanted to inform you of our success so that you don’t have to post the hunt.”

“Very good, child. Allow me to present you your reward.”

“Reward?”

“Hunts posted always have compensation for the task presented. Surely you didn’t forget about such a thing. Most hunters undertake those tasks on the board for specifically the rewards such jobs can reap. Bounty hunters and regular hunters and just regular citizens who feel they might be capable of helping enjoy the idea of making some money or being granted gifts for their work. Many make a living off of it.”

“Yeah, well…my friends were just bored, honestly. We don’t need a reward. If food hadn’t been offered, we wouldn’t be heading to the palace, either. You don’t need to give us anything.”

“Oh, but I insist. After all, by stopping Aillen, you saved this entire kingdom. Allow the one who put you up to this task to give you something in return.” While she spoke, she dug around a chest beside a bookcase and pulled out a canvas bag that was usually made for gold coins. “Here. I had prepared it as the reward for the hunt anyway, so I don’t need it.”

Finnegan figured that it would be rude to decline, and maybe Aslaug would be happy to have a reward. Fáfnir certainly, at the very least.

He took the canvas bag - realizing it was heavier than he expected - and bowed his head. “Thank you. We were happy to be of service.”

As Finnegan headed to the palace, he didn’t notice the hum coming within the bag’s contents that resonated with his Io.

“Finn!” Vaan called. “Good to see you made it.”

“Did you expect me to face a monster or something?” he shrugged.

“You never know, honestly,” Aslaug mumbled.

By the time Vaan had caught Finnegan up on the situation, Lorcan had shifted back into Fionn. Luckily his clothes shifted along with his form, or else Dearil would be wearing Fionn’s oversized clothes or Fionn would end up in Dearil’s small dress. Not only was Fionn at least a foot taller than Dearil, but he was also built fuller like a man normally was compared to a woman. Dearil even ranged on the small side for being a lithe faerie woman while Fionn was average, maybe a little bigger than most men around him. He was taller than Finnegan and even Kráka when he was transformed barely met him at the same height.

“Welcome back,” Aslaug greeted.

“I never left you,” Fionn countered. “All of us have the choice of watching the interactions of our others.”

“I’m guessing Phoenix doesn’t shut up.”

“We learn to ignore him most of the time.” Fionn’s eye twitched and Aslaug guessed that Phoenix was protesting heavily from within.

“Come on, guys,” Vaan announced. “Time to introduce you to my brothers.”

The nightly banquet consisted of King Jonakr, his wife Gudrun, their three sons, Vaan, and now Aslaug and her group was joining them. Vaan explained that there were people who came in and out who sometimes stayed at the palace, but at the moment it was just her and her family. Gudrun, her mother, often worried about Vaan returning to Gjúki’s kingdom, because his wife Grímhildr wasn’t exactly Gudrun’s favorite person. Grímhildr was Vaan’s grandmother and the sorceress who was pretty much the reason for most of Gudrun’s suffering - including everything that happened with Brynhildr, Sigurd, and Atli who killed Gudrun’s brothers in a haunting incident. Old King Gjúki had many children from other women, of course, but most of them weren’t residing within the kingdom. There _were_ rumors that his other children were to come and contest for the throne, which Gudrun wanted Vaan and her cousin Niflung to be careful and stay out of.

“She’s overprotective, but I know where it comes from,” Vaan said, her hand on the door to the dining room. “Please don’t talk about family politics in front of her. It’s the last thing that she needs.”

“So what _should_ we be talking about?” Finnegan asked.

“Uh…I don’t know. Compliment Hamdir and Sörli on the fact that they can’t be harmed by mortal weapons - they got blesssed. Compliment Erp on how intelligent he is. I don’t know. Just be conversational.”

“You don’t want _any_ politics?” Aslaug clarified.

“No. Why? Do you _want_ to talk boring old politics?”

“Beyond the fact that we saved your kingdom, two of us are actual royalty,” Finnegan pointed out. “Granted _Kuria_ isn’t, but Kráka is.”

“Would you like me to attend as Kráka, Master?” Kuria asked.

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” Aslaug said.

“You are ideal as you are, love,” Fionn said. He took the opportunity to steal a kiss from the djinn.

Vaan took a deep breath. “Here we go. Time to meet my family.”

She pushed open the door to the dining room, leading the way. The palace was hardly anything that impressed Aslaug or her group, and the large dining hall was no different in the sense that they were used to such large tables that seated many but rarely were filled to capacity.

“Svanhild, so good of you to join us,” the king at the head of the table said.

“Sis!” one of the boys seated at the table called.

“Sörli, really, there’s no reason to fret!” Vaan protested as her brother ran up to embrace her.

“You go off on an impromptu trip and now you get caught out during an attack,” Sörli scolded. “And you expect us not to worry?!”

“They were close to dragging you down here by force,” another of her brothers chuckled.

“Yes, thank you for that, Erp,” Vaan muttered.

“We really _were_ concerned about you, dear,” the queen said. “But who are these guests you brought?” The queen eyed Aslaug warily, which the dragon-girl didn’t miss.

“These are the heroes that protected the kingdom and warded off the attacker.” Vaan motioned to each of them as she introduced them. “This is Aslaug, her husband Finnegan, and their servants Kuria and Fionn. Well, I suppose Fionn isn’t actually their servant, but he…well…uh…”

“Forgive me,” Fionn interrupted. He bowed his head. “I was in exile when I first encountered my comrades, and I was made their servant in return for sanctuary. I have since been exonerated of my crimes, and so my days of servitude have been renounced.”

The group of royals studied each of them silently, but Vaan quickly worked to break the silence. “Please, sit. I had the staff prepare extra for you. They’re my friends; they’ve helped me before, but they were in the area coming to visit me and were able to solve the crisis.”

“If you would be so kind as to report the cause of the incident as well as your interference,” King Jonakr requested. “As a mandatory formality.”

“Of course,” Fionn responded. “I was the one to dispose of the threat.”

Fionn, Kuria, and Finnegan were urged to sit, Kuria placing himself beside Erp with Finnegan next and then Fionn - the two supernatural creatures guarding their human. Vaan sat beside her brother Sörli on the other side of the table with Aslaug sitting beside Vaan. Fáfnir internally sighed at the boring dinner setting; he much preferred rowdy dinners with the Nords where Aslaug could eat like a pig. Fáfnir had a big diet, man.

Aslaug had to eat with manners, but she still ate way more than a normal woman would while Fionn went to explaining the details about Aillen and how he stopped Aillen by making a bargain with him that Aillen would not meddle in human affairs in return for not being turned in to the faerie courts. Fionn carefully weaved around the fact that he himself was a faerie or that he had any relations to Aillen at all, which Aslaug felt was smart. Kuria passed Aslaug his food across the table since he didn’t technically need to eat anything, and so Aslaug ended up getting most of _his_ food as well.

“That is certainly a…merciful way of handling the situation,” Gudrun complimented.

“I am no savage intent only on causing harm and felling opponents,” Fionn said.

Conversation was careful and boring throughout the rest of dinner. Kuria instinctively took Vaan’s advice and managed to compliment her brothers by the end of dinner. Aslaug kept noticing that Gudrun was giving her wary looks, so it wasn’t a surprise that at the end of dinner Gudrun asked to speak with her alone.

“It’s fine,” Aslaug assured them. “Head to our room, all right? I’ll meet you there in a bit. Feel free to go to bed; I might be a short while.”

Vaan looked on with a worried glance, but she nodded and guided the boys away. Finnegan stuck his tongue out at her when no one was looking and Aslaug responded with a rude gesture. Gudrun dismissed her husband before the two of them retreated out of the dining hall where the servants were cleaning up. Gudrun led them to a parlor of sorts, closing the doors behind her and locking them.

“What are you doing alive?” Gudrun asked, her voice cold with malice.

“I’m not sure what you mean by that,” Aslaug replied smoothly. “I’ve been alive ever since I was born.”

She turned from the doors to snatch Aslaug by her traveling cloak. “Don’t play _games_ , Brynhildr!” she snapped.

Aslaug had to resist Fáfnir’s urges to strike out against her. While Gudrun was certainly upset, she didn’t have any real strength in her for her to be a true threat. Maybe once she’d had some strength in her (stories said she took up arms against Atli along with her brothers), but now she was weak from her life of peace and her depression. Even if she _was_ at peak strength, Aslaug was more than strong enough to cope. Aslaug simply drew her arm up to gently wrap around Gudrun’s wrist, but she didn’t try and shake the queen off.

“I am not Brynhildr,” she said cautiously.

Gudrun’s eyes darted across Aslaug’s face, studying her carefully. With every second that passed, her anger seemed to slowly fade. Finally, she released her grip on Aslaug’s traveling cloak, as if pulled out of a spell.

“Yes…I mean, no, I suppose not.” She lowered her gaze, stepping back from Aslaug.

“Do I…look like…Brynhildr?” Aslaug asked, careful with her wording.

She didn’t know if it would be a good or a bad thing if Gudrun knew that she was aware of her heritage. After all, Aslaug had gathered enough information to know that Brynhildr was the one who ruined her life, and Sigurd was her former husband. Though the circumstances weren’t entirely Gudrun’s fault, Aslaug herself couldn’t help her feelings of resentment for this woman who had married her father in place of her mother. It hurt to think that Sigurd had ever loved someone other than her mother, that her father had abandoned her and her mother for this woman. It was, in actuality, Grímhildr who both of them should resent; Grímhildr had forced Aslaug’s parents to marry her children and had then married Gudrun to Atli who had brought ruin upon their family. In a way, Aslaug figured, they had a common enemy.

“Aslaug, you said your name was?” Gudrun asked. Aslaug nodded. “Do you know who your parents were, Aslaug?”

“I never knew my parents. Or at least, I was too young to ever really remember them. I’ve been raised by my uncle Heimr all my life.”

“You look like someone, a woman named Brynhildr.”

“Yeah, I gathered that. I assume you hold resentment for her.”

“Yes. She…we have a history. But she perished long ago. I’d hoped to never see her face again. I wasn’t sure. I’d all but forgotten what she looked like. But when I saw you…”

“I look enough like her to incite your wrath.”

She nodded. “Yes, you resemble Brynhildr, however…you also resemble my ex-husband. I suspect you may be their child from before I had met both of them - before I had married my husband. You may know his name: a great man known as Sigurd.”

“Sigurd…the slayer of Fáfnir.”

She nodded. “He loved Brynhildr, however my mother stole his memories of her. I had no idea he’d had a former love, that he had been promised to her before we had married. And now I find that he had a child with her. When he regained his memories, he begged her forgiveness and offered his hand in marriage once more, completely forgetting about me. He must have loved her dearly, but to have left her so abruptly…it broke her heart and mind. She went mad, and well…”

“And…nothing good happened.”

The haunted look in Gudrun’s eyes couldn’t be faked. It occurred to Aslaug just how much this woman had gone through, but unlike Brynhildr and Sigurd - or Sigvǫrðr, as Aslaug preferred, since that was what her mother had always called him - Gudrun had survived. And Aslaug couldn’t even imagine the hardship that a woman like Gudrun had to go through married to the savage Atli. Aslaug had never known what it was like to be forced into anything against her will; she was gifted with powers that allowed her to hold her own in a fight, and she was extremely lucky to have found Finnegan to pose as her husband and just to actually _be_ her best friend.

“Does Svanhild know?” Gudrun asked. “Does she even suspect?”

Aslaug shook her head. “No.” She noticed how Gudrun neither accused nor dismissed the idea that Aslaug knew her parentage either.

“Then it’s best we keep it that way. She doesn’t need such confusion in her life.”

Aslaug nodded. She had been planning on telling Vaan their relationship…eventually. Something inside her was both relieved and disappointed that now she had an excuse not to tell Vaan the truth. Granted, it wasn’t like promising Gudrun anything limited her like promises were binding for Kuria and Fionn. She could still tell Vaan…eventually. Just not while they were here.

“Vaan spoke fondly of you as a friend. I hope you will continue to be her friend.”

“Friends, kin - so long as the bond is true, the line between the two grows blurry.”

Gudrun nodded. “You have my apologies for my outburst.”

“As long as we can come to an agreement now, think nothing of it.”

Gudrun gazed at Aslaug’s face, a whirlwind of emotions swirling through her eyes. “You look like him. I can see him in you, just as I see her.”

Aslaug wandered back to the room that she sensed her comrades in. She summoned a sheet of reflective ice into her hands, staring down at her reflection. She so rarely looked at herself; she had never even considered the idea that if she wanted to know what her parents truly looked like, perhaps her own face was a sort of reference.

‘ ** _Did you ever know what they looked like, Fáfnir?_** ’ she asked.

‘ _I knew your father for our short interaction after he’d pierced my heart and I was bleeding out,_ ’ Fáfnir replied dryly.

‘ ** _Gee,_ ** **that’s** **_a great way to meet._** ’

‘ _It’s like you forget that I was your father’s enemy._ ’

‘ ** _I think_ ** **you** **_forget sometimes too._** ’

Aslaug used her power to unlock the door to their room and crept inside. The lights were off, and she could only take in the vague silhouette of the grand guest room (nothing that would impress her, she knew) and the lumps that were the boys in one of the large beds. She saw Kráka was out, draped across Finnegan who was facing and wrapped around Fionn, his head in the crook of the faerie’s neck. Both Fionn and Kráka looked to be protecting the human, with Finnegan and Fionn hugging and Kráka embracing them both. Kráka was still awake, and considering their state of undress, Aslaug was starting to realize how much stamina the djinn had built up to maintain their form.

Kráka’s head rose as his ruby eyes gazed towards Aslaug in the dark. They knew Aslaug could see them through the dark, so they rose a finger to their lips in a silencing motion before lowering their head down again to continue breathing in the scent of Finnegan. Aslaug knew that when supernatural creatures fell in love they had impulsive instincts to protect their loves above all else. Though Aslaug and all of them were friends who had known each other so long, Aslaug knew that if she disrupted a moment like this she’d have a snappy djinn and faerie lashing out at her. They didn’t mean anything by it, but any humanity they had got overridden by their animal instincts - especially during moments of intimacy. Even Finnegan himself got possessive because he was bonded to them as the lover of two supernaturals.

The thing about supernaturals is that they have distinct soul-mates; sometimes they have multiple mates, but the point remained the same: they have precise love interests and they don’t fall for just anyone. Once they find their soul-mate or mates, they just _know_. For each species, the process is different, and even among the same species, there are different methods that people can resort to. Werewolves can sense and smell their mates the first moment they come within sniffing distance of their mate (which is a pretty broad range considering their enhanced noses), or sometimes their gods give certain wolves stones to track down their mates. They have a pack mentality, and once a mate is found the entire pack will welcome them in, regardless of what species the mate is. The amount of love in a wolf pack is almost overwhelming. Vampires find their loves by smelling their blood or even tasting it. Depending on how old and powerful a vampire is, they can learn magic and their senses can help them track down mates as well. Faeries can kinda just sense their loved ones, though the range in which they can sense them varies depending on the person, and like vampires it’s a case that the older they get the more powerful they become. Once old enough, faeries can sometimes see the auras around people, and the one aura they can’t see is the one that matches theirs - aka their soul-mates.

Dragons, as far as Aslaug was aware, just have their instincts to go off of, but the whole age thing does make them more powerful. Their magic prowess depended on the individual, but with Fáfnir having started out human, Aslaug wasn’t sure if she’d ever find her own mate.

And that was just a few examples. The simple fact was that there isn’t any one rule for any creature, regardless of the species. The point is that they have predestined fates with those they love - not necessarily for reproductive needs either. Lovers can be any gender, age, species, and fertility doesn’t play a factor. You loved who you loved, and the system was never wrong because feelings and souls can’t be corrupted or fooled when it comes down to it. If someone tried to mate with someone unwilling or someone who wasn’t their actual mate, things could get messy. There are times when mates think they are completely incompatible and their lifestyles couldn’t possibly be more inconvenient, but fate knows what it’s doing, and everything will work out. That’s the great thing about being a supernatural: love isn’t up for debate. Granted there were always cases where soul-mates didn’t find each other in one lifetime, but rebirth will always make sure there’s a chance.

The entire supernatural world bent to the laws of mates, so no matter the methods that someone was using, everyone knew not to stand in the way of a mated couple either finding each other or being together. Not even the strictest of parents or the firmest of employers or the most protective of friends could deny a couple who were confirmed mates to be apart. Not only was it physically and emotionally painful to be too far apart from a mate too long, but one or both of the mates would become feral in an effort to get to the other. And forget _hurting_ someone’s mate; you’d be a dead person walking. There’s no way to hide, and even the gods can end up intervening if you piss off their people. It wasn’t _always_ the case that mates were romantically involved; some mates were platonic and the absolute best of friends. Siblings could be soul-mates as well, but in those cases there were very, _very_ rarely ever just two in the relationship - it would be polyamorous. Soul-mates were defined as the same soul being split amongst multiple people who are instinctively drawn together, so twins and such were logical results, but that meant that there was likely one or more separate entities that were their romantic mates. Either way, _no one_ got in the way of those mates and no one dared open their mouth to insult platonic mates the same as they wouldn’t badmouth romantic mates.

Aslaug sometimes wondered how humans coped, wandering around in the dark for their loved soul-mates. Humans were diverse creatures, not bound by their biology beyond perhaps the desire to change, to evolve, to have a better life than they already possessed. They had to stumble around, searching blindly for their other half or halves - and more often than not they got it wrong. Even when they _did_ find love, it rarely ever lasted a lifetime. It’s a natural thing for feelings to fade when a life with someone is secured; when love is guaranteed, when it isn’t being threatened, it’s easy to take it for granted. Love is only tempting when it seems out of your reach, when it’s put at risk. That’s why danger and the possibility of losing one’s soul-mate causes lust that humans often regret later. The fact is, humans aren’t limited to who they love; they weren’t limited by _anything_ , meaning there was never a clear path for them to take. It’s an unstable lifestyle, and it’s kinda scary, Aslaug thought, but she wouldn’t trade her humanity for anything.

Aslaug was proud to be part human. Her humanity made her feel pain and hurt when she loved and when she lost. When she stopped to think about her endless regret that will always plague her and the long years of heartbreak that may fell her in the end, given enough time, she was afraid. Her heart may turn to stone one day, but it was worth it to have these experiences. She was both part of the supernatural world and the human world, and she felt they should be working to interweave the two more consistently.

She had fun introducing humans to her life, and other times it would be extremely difficult - especially if she found out that a human was her current soul-mate. Humans didn’t believe in soul-mates and bonding with someone for life because most of them never had the supernatural bindings that tied their destiny to distinct love interests, though some liked to entertain the notion to some extent. Aslaug wondered what it’d be like when and _if_ she ever found her soul-mate or mates. Honestly, she wasn’t sure if she really wanted to go through the experience of loving and then losing. She and Fáfnir alike didn’t like being tied down by loved ones. (Finn and the others didn’t count, Aslaug meant an actual romantic partner).

Aslaug vaguely wondered what they’d smell like.

She juggled with the idea that perhaps she had her platonic soul-mates in Finnegan and the others. They were her family, and she certainly didn’t like the idea of losing them. What would she do without her gentle Finnegan and her goofball Kuria and all of Fionn? She honestly didn’t want to entertain _that_ possible future. But at the same time, she was fine with being separated from them. When Finnegan had offered to go to the inn, she hadn’t felt an overwhelming desire to make sure he was safe. If he faced trouble along the way, he could handle himself. If he got into dire trouble, Aslaug and the others would help get him back without fail. Aslaug had heard that when mates got together, they didn’t even like being apart when one of them had a job or when one of them had to go to the store. Aslaug didn’t feel a bond _that_ strong because she trusted all of them and they trusted her. Was that the bond of mates or was that just their tight friendship?

She wondered what it’d be like to feel that inescapable pull of mates. It scared and exhilarated her.

Aslaug could use her radius senses to navigate in the dark (granted she could also use her dragon eyes for night vision as well), heading to the washroom and cleaning up before bed. She headed to the large bed that she had all to herself.

There were three beds, one for her and Finnegan to share, being husband and wife, and one for Kuria and Fionn separately, but all they needed were two. Even if only two of them were sleeping together at a time (mainly if Kráka wasn’t able to emerge) Kuria didn’t sleep anyway and if he needed to would just lie down on the floor. Aslaug wondered if Kráka couldn’t sleep either. Sure Kuria was an empty vessel who had little concept of the passing of time, but Kráka was fully aware of himself. Being awake for eternity would be enough to drive anyone mad, anyone who was conscious and sentient, anyway. She supposed he slept when Kuria was active, perhaps.


	19. Leaving

The next morning, true to form, Kuria was the first one awake. He had gotten dressed again and went to get food from the kitchens. Kuria, still a servant of Aslaug’s with literally nothing better to do, often woke them with breakfast. If not for him (and Fáfnir’s complaining), Aslaug might forget to eat, honestly, and she’d stay asleep so long you’d think she were in a coma.

By the time Aslaug was awoken by the smell of bacon, Finnegan and Fionn seemed to already be up and making out. They cut short their activities when Aslaug practically growled and slipped out of bed to the door like a snake at the smell of food and Finnegan startled at Aslaug’s sudden movement. Fionn laughed, Finnegan blushed and hid under the covers.

“Wakey, wakey, eggs and bacon-y!” Vaan called as she burst into the room behind Kuria. She frowned at her own statement. “Hmm…that saying could use some work. Anyway! We brought freshly cooked eggs and bacon!”

Aslaug snatched the bacon that Kuria had ready for her and retreated back to her bed before digging in. Vaan, meanwhile, headed over to Finnegan and Fionn with two prepared plates that she delivered like she was a proud waitress.

“According to Kuria, you prefer your eggs scrambled, Finnegan. And Fionn doesn’t really have any preferences, so I just made them scrambled too. And apparently Aslaug doesn’t like eggs.”

“She prefers meat, yeah,” Finnegan agreed. “Which I think is dumb since a vegetarian diet is technically better for you.”

“If she can manage to be as strong as she is with just a meat diet, making her a vegetarian will probably get her to dangerous levels of powerful. Veggies making her stronger plus pissing her off since she’s stuck eating nothing but them plants.”

“Oh you’d all be dead by sunrise,” Aslaug agreed through a mouthful of meat. She’d finished her first plate, but Kuria was there with a second right on cue.

“So.” Vaan plopped down on Aslaug’s bed. “About that baby you found, it’s a girl. She hasn’t caused us any problems yet, but she _does_ drink a lot of water. Like, _salt_ water.”

“I suspect she must be the child of a sea-based deity, perhaps that of the moon spirit,” Kuria volunteered.

Fionn and Finnegan glanced at Kuria, who sounded almost enthusiastic that he’d come to a conclusion like that on his own. Almost like Kuria hadn’t been _ordered_ to give that information and instead has his own opinion. That was just so unlike Kuria that it was slightly startling. It must’ve been some Kráka thing.

“So what?” Aslaug asked, finishing off her second plate and almost seeming sated. “We just chuck it into the sea and it’ll grow a tail and be raised by the Nereids.”

“Aslaug, we can’t just do that!” Vaan scolded.

“Why not?”

“Because she deserves to be raised by a loving family here on _land_ where she was _born_. We might as well be abandoning her when she’s already been abandoned.”

Aslaug frowned, dropping her plate on her lap. “You just want to have a baby, don’t you?”

“No! How dare you accuse me of being so vain?” Vaan crossed her arms and turned away in a dramatic huff. “ _I’m_ just looking out for a little baby with this thing called compassion. I don’t believe you and compassion have met yet.”

“Oh, we’ve met. I punched compassion in the face and now we have a bit of a passive-aggressive relationship.”

“That would be _just_ like you to punch a universal concept of comradery in the face.” Vaan blew some of her strawberry blonde hair out of her face. Aslaug wondered if her bedhead always managed to look tamed or if she just woke at the ungodly hours of the morning and brushed it before Aslaug woke. “Anyway, _I_ can’t raise the baby. I can only raise children descending from my own line. At least, that’s the way it is until I become queen. Only if me and my future king decide to adopt a baby can it happen, and even then, it has to be done with some discretion. Unfortunately, that’s not an option for me right now.”

“You want _us_ to raise it and let you in on it,” Aslaug guessed flatly.

“Well you don’t have to go and say it so passive-aggressively!” Vaan snapped. She looked like a haughty sun goddess pouting about not getting a pet.

“Vaan, while I can do a lot of things, raising a kid isn’t one of them. I like to travel, I like to hunt, I like danger and I like jumping into things head-first without caution. And I don’t like liabilities. I’m not sure about Finnegan or Fionn, but Kuria comes with me no matter where I go.”

“Is that a _threat_ , Aslaug?” Fionn asked, his entire demeanor darkening.

“I follow Master,” Kuria said simply. “I obey Master, but I follow Master because I desire to do so.”

“Because he’s your slave,” Finnegan snapped.

“Finnegan-san, I am-”

He held up a hand to cut the djinn off. “No, you have the power to hold him hostage, Aslaug, and so you get what you want no matter what.”

Finnegan’s attempt to silence Kuria didn’t work, as Kuria just kept on speaking over Finnegan. “-not a slave, I am a servant of a benevolent master who has treated me with reverence as I have done for him.”

Luckily Aslaug could use her powers to process what both of them were saying at once, so she caught as both of their sentences ended at about the same time.

“Finn, this isn’t about me getting whatever I want,” Aslaug said. “I do what I want because I was given this thing called free will when I was born and so I’m going to use it. What you do with your life is up to you, but Kuria follows me because that’s just how things happened. If you care more about some random infant than me, then that’s your decision. Stay here, divorce me and marry Vaan for all I care, but that’s up to you, because _my_ decision remains firm; I’m not going to just sit down and waste years of my life on a kid just because the princess over here can’t find a proper man to knock her up.”

“Hey!” Vaan snapped. “Just because you disagree with what I asked of you doesn’t mean you have to be all prissy about it!”

“Aslaug, you are free to leave, but should we ever have a disagreement, you hold an unfair advantage with Kuria at your command,” Fionn said.

“You know what? Keep him. Kuria, stay with Finnegan and Fionn. Treat them like your new Masters. Don’t get tied down to me when I know that you’re happier with them.”

Kuria frowned, his lips shaking as though he was resisting speaking. “Y-Yes Master,” he whispered.

Aslaug grabbed her traveling cloak and threw it around her shoulders, clasping it like second nature. “I know you’ve always wanted a domestic life, Finnegan,” she said gently. “Vaan, if they’re doing this favor for you, you’d better treat them right in return.”

“You’re just _leaving?_ ” Vaan exclaimed. “But aren’t they your _family?_ How can you just abandon your family?”

“I can leave them when I feel that we would be better apart than together. We can’t agree on everything forever. Families take breaks from each other; that doesn’t mean I’m abandoning them. I’m taking a break from them. If you can take a break from your family, that proves that you love them enough that something as simple as a break can’t tear you apart. See you all whenever I feel like coming back. You know how to get into contact with me in case of emergencies, but I doubt there’s anything you can’t handle by yourselves.”

“Aslaug…” Vaan muttered.

“Bye,” she dismissed, quickly retreating out of the room and hurrying down the hall.

She hated long goodbyes and partings because it was best to just get things over with and move on. Delaying the process of farewells only ensured that you wasted time and felt worse and worse about leaving, so what was the point?

Aslaug made her way out of the palace, sneaking past anyone with an invisibility glamour and making her way out.

* * *

Vaan sighed. “Is she _always_ so antagonistic?”

“She _was_ unusually hostile,” Fionn admitted.

“Who knew the idea of raising a kid would get her so hot and bothered?” Vaan took a deep breath. “I’m sure she’ll be back eventually. For now, do you want to come meet the little one?”

The baby was revealed to have webbing between her little fingers, a sign of her supernatural blood. It wasn’t very obvious since her fingers were still so tiny, but Fionn was the first to notice it.

“My mother was a water nymph,” Fionn explained. “I can sense a tidal presence.”

“Wait, your mom was a water nymph, and _you_ are a fire god…?” Finnegan asked hesitantly.

He nodded. “I felt a great burden to my mother, though we interacted as best a family could.”

“Surely that means you know how to help raise her,” Vaan requested. “Just a few tips for the supernatural aspects of her would be more than enough.”

“Well, she _is_ technically our charge,” Finnegan said. “What are we going to call her? Something water or moon related maybe.”

Fionn put his hand to his chin in thought. “Aysel. It means ‘moon stream.’”

“Aysel it is then.”


	20. Jederik and Pip

Aslaug ended up going to multiple towns during her time away from her group.

It started with a town plagued by a bloodthirsty boar which she had to help slay. The next was a corrupt leader in a town that was capturing travelers and keeping them held as slaves. The third town she found a rogue nest of supernatural creatures that seemed to be using the town as a harvesting farm, like raising cattle but with humans.

“Why can’t we just feed off animals?” Aslaug asked. “Honestly, I’m partial to humans myself, but why would you all go treating them like animals when they have a lot of potential? I find that humans work well when treated right, and they can even be beneficial if you find the right ones.”

“Humans are dangerous creatures if you give them too much power,” a vampire argued. “They hunt anything that isn’t their own kind and keep the more docile creatures to farm them of ingredients. Sometimes they’re even cruel to their own kind.”

“Humans are really unpredictable,” a werewolf said nervously. “I don’t like the idea of them getting their power. At least we wolves have pack mentality and honor, but they see even half-humans like us…”

“If the animosity between our races continues, we’ll all just end up hunting each other to death,” a faerie girl said. “Personally, I don’t like the idea of living just to kill others or die.”

“At least this way we don’t have to worry about them being hostile,” a dryad reasoned. “They’re docile as cattle here.”

“A bird who is born in a cage thinks freedom is a crime,” Aslaug muttered.

“I admit that I don’t like being an oppressor,” a serpent-man said. “But if it means we have to be slightly corrupt or risk our families and our people, then I’ll grin and bear it while the humans are held in check.”

Aslaug sighed. “I figured there’d be a system or something. The feral ones I understand, but aren’t you all civilized enough to create an organized society?”

“We’re organized,” a fox girl admitted. “But most of us here are just…little guys. We let the big guys make the decisions for our survival. One of the leaders had a mate who got hurt by humans, and so he made it his mission to protect the rest of us. He’s really generous and nice, you should meet him. He did all this so that the rest of us could live in peace.”

Aslaug sighed. “If only there was some kind of government keeping all of this in check.”

“Again, you should meet the bosses,” a rabbit girl said. “They aren’t mean, really. One of them even gave me enough food to save my family when I nearly died from human hunters! I owe them everything.”

Aslaug shifted. “Humans and supernaturals really do need to find a way to get along. It would be a big project though, and it’d require some big-wigs in the human world to come to an agreement as well and make sure their followers go along with it. Not to mention the presence in the supernatural world would also need to be big enough to keep all the hard cases in check.”

“If humans could stop hunting us, that’d be nice,” a deer man said.

“But that’d mean _we’d_ have to agree to stop hunting _them_ ,” a bear guy frowned. “Some of us actually rely on them for food sources, you know.”

“Yeah,” a vampire agreed. “We vamps need human blood. Sure we _can_ live off other stuff, but that’s like forcing humans to eat nothing but grass to survive!”

“I heard some of them _do_ eat only greens though,” someone whispered.

“Yeah, but not _all_ of them,” someone else whispered back.

“Maybe we can find a way to harvest from them without them knowing it,” Aslaug suggested. “I mean, just a little mind manipulation maybe from the faeries or warlocks and we can make them forget what we took. It’s dangerous to have humans _knowing_ that they’re being oppressed because they’ll inevitably rise up in revolution.”

“But most of us treat the humans really nicely,” a small bird-ish creature said. “If we treat them nicely in return for their stuff…I mean we’re not really oppressing them, right? Humans raise animals all the time like that.”

“You know how unpredictable humans can get,” a snake girl said. “There’s always going to be _one_ who thinks that our good treatment isn’t enough. One is enough to convince the others to hate us as well. Next thing you know, we have a revolution. Honestly, I’m scared to go near the humans. I’d rather they not know I exist.”

The conversation went round and around in the large dining hall for the supernatural creatures. Aslaug had to admit that this town was very well organized. She learned that the humans were held within enchanted pens that didn’t allow any privacy in case they were planning escapes. Aslaug, as a dragon with Fáfnir, was granted the same access as all visitors or staying residents. She could go and observe the humans at her leisure. The only times that humans were taken from the pens were if they had acted up and needed to be punished or if one of the women were going to have a baby - the supernaturals weren’t heartless enough to let new human children being born die because of poor conditions. Humans were allowed to raise them and any sicknesses and illnesses were treated.

Aslaug had to admit that the humans were treated…better than she’d seen before. At least they weren’t kept in the dark underground or anything, but they were humiliated, put out on display. They couldn’t go to the bathroom or have sex in private, but since they were raised that way, it didn’t seem to be a problem. Actually, they seemed to enjoy the comradery of being with other humans at all times. They didn’t know how to read or write, but they did enjoy drawing in the dirt. Their pens were kept protected from the cold and the heat and they were allowed to see the sun, the skies, the clouds, and the stars. They were taught how to speak a few different languages just so that they could communicate any concerns and so they can be told orders, but most of it was basic. They were aware of the supernaturals watching them and sometimes went over to the viewing areas to wave hello. Especially the young innocent ones. They were well-fed during meal times, all of them getting equal meals, and they were given some entertainment in the most rudimentary fashion. So long as they didn’t hurt themselves, they were allowed basic amenities.

Aslaug still found it demeaning, but it was at least better than what some of the more savage supernaturals would have done.

The humans were pulled out one by one every day to get harvested for things like blood, but never too much was taken that it would harm them. Any creatures who broke the rules and harmed or even killed the humans were punished and rejected sanctuary here. Any humans who happened upon the town were given basic needs like food and there was a place for them to stay if they needed sanctuary in the night, but if they caused trouble and found out the truth about this place, they were taken in, memories wiped, and they joined the herd.

Aslaug arranged a meeting with one of the leaders, who turned out to be another dragon, but unlike Aslaug he was a shifter, able to take a human form or a dragon form or something in between if he were so inclined. Aslaug could only tell he was a dragon because she could sense it from Fáfnir. Dragons were connected to other dragons, it seemed. His little mate was a cute androgynous squid nymph whose skin was a shimmering light blue dotted with white specs like freckles or stars. Their eyes were dark as the deep blue sea with no pupils but they reflected light like glass so that there seemed to be lighter and darker patches swirling around depending on the angle they were looking. If Aslaug were a poet she might’ve said you could see whole galaxies in his eyes. Little fin-like ears poked out from their long flowing hair that shimmered all different colors of blue and wiggled like living tentacles and seemed to mimic floating in the sea despite being in the air.

“Greetings,” the dragon said formally. “I am Jederik.”

“I’m Pip!” the small squid creature exclaimed. “It’s short for-” He made a noise that Aslaug assumed was another language.

“Pip,” Aslaug reaffirmed. “That’s a good name, Pip.”

“What brings you here?” Jederik asked.

“I just wanted to discuss something about this place. The humans here…”

Aslaug was never good with words, but she tried her best to describe her concerns, though she herself didn’t fully understand why this bothered her so much.

“I understand,” Jederik said, as though he had heard this on multiple occasions, or perhaps pondered it himself more times than he could count. “I have considered treating the humans in a different way. If we started facing problems and this colony fell apart, we wouldn’t have many options for the more docile creatures. I was considering a way that we might integrate this business into a greater expansion, hopefully with human consent. I’m just not sure how we could possibly get humans and supernaturals to possibly get along.”

“We just need to start with some friendly kingdoms for a trial run and then expand to other kingdoms through trade and the right heirs to work things out.”

Aslaug ended up spending the rest of the day working with Jederik and Pip to figure out a solution to the crisis where most of the non-hostile supernaturals could get steady and proper streams of sustenance. With some help from the other leaders of the town, they actually started creating a decent plan. What to do with _hostile_ supernaturals was the problem.

“We need some kind of…government and police force,” Aslaug sighed. “But even _humans_ don’t have a full grasp on a peaceful system…”

“Then we’re going to need some tough enforcers that neither humans nor supernaturals can resist,” Jederik continued. “But we need them to be followed out of respect, not out of fear.”

“Agreed. Hm…” Her gaze fell to the side in thought. “Only thing I can think of is some kind of god. Humans revere their gods and the supernatural world worship their gods and the blessings from them.”

“You make it sound like we have access to the gods. Sure, they intervene when someone has dishonored their people, but we don’t have any way to get into contact with them. Not to mention asking favors of them seems a bit presumptuous.”

“I have access to some gods,” Aslaug admitted. “Some are more…prissy than others, but in the end I know that the big guys probably wouldn’t protest to helping set up a system.”

“You know gods?!” Pip exclaimed.

“I’d have to call in some favors from my friends, but it’s entirely possible. You might be able to meet some of the gods if you want, little Pip.”

“Cool…”

“As long as it’s safe,” Jederik intervened. “Some of the gods don’t get along with each other. There was a feud between the goddess who created werewolves and the god who created vampires before. That feud was just barely resolved because the conflict had escalated too far. Even though the conflict between the _gods_ has been somewhat resolved, the vampires and the werewolves still have a lot of animosity between them.”

“I can work with the top gods who keep the others in order. Let’s just say I know a very important god who got me introduced to some of the higher powers - for better or worse. I can at least try to introduce the idea of a peaceful system. But we’re gonna need representatives from the supernaturals down here and some select humans should be allowed in on it as well. They follow multiple gods, but overall the top-dogs strive for peace and encourage their followers to be good to their fellows and such. And any humans that _aren’t_ in it for peace will just be left out of the loop and governed by the others.”

“Conflicts are going to continue one way or another, Aslaug. All of us need food to survive, and forcing everyone on a vegan diet isn’t going to solve anything. It’ll just confuse people and likely enrage them.”

“Even if we can’t stop the natural cycle of life, we can still establish some ground rules. For example, if a human goes out and hunts a supernatural without provocation then they will be punished. Even if it’s just in their dreams or they’re given a bout of bad luck or something - or someone - is taken in return. We’ll sus out the details once we start drawing up the official rules, but basically, unprovoked attacks should be a guaranteed punishment. If a monster starts rampaging on a human town, then the humans have the right to fight back and defend their home. We might need to set up a judiciary system to handle the case-by-case instances of whether or not an attack was unprovoked or not. We should make sure that we have a place where any supernatural can get food and shelter and a way to set them up with livelihoods so that they don’t grow desperate enough to attack anyone else. There can still be willing fights and stuff, but nothing _too_ brutal.”

“This is going to take a long time to set up, Aslaug, even with the gods’ help. Not to mention the fact that you have to inform all of the supernaturals of the new rules and regulations and system. There are no doubt going to be rouges and mercenaries and a black market. Where there are rules, there are rule-breakers.”

Aslaug nodded. “And we’ll deal with them as the time comes. Rule-breakers are inevitable, but they stabilize the society too. If _everyone_ were complacent, I’d be even _more_ worried. I’ve got some time, really. Nothing better to do. Time isn’t the enemy of an immortal, right? If you’re willing to help me, Jederik, we can help build the foundations of an era of peace.”

“Me too!” Pip exclaimed.

Aslaug chuckled. “Yes, of course you too, Pip.”

Jederik instinctively held Pip close, which the smaller squid nymph didn’t seem to mind. Pip just snuggled closer with a small trill of contentment, like some kind of purr. Aslaug again found herself wondering what it was like to have a mate and fall in love with them.

“If I can make it safer for Pip and others like them…yeah, I’ll definitely help.”

“Great. Then let’s get started.”


	21. The AEGIS Covenant and Letters Home

Aslaug lost track of time.

She used some connections from Phoenix in order to talk to some of the more powerful and wise gods and propose her plan of peace. There were many minor gods that opposed the idea of pure peace, but Aslaug assured them that there were going to be requests allowed for rules regarding certain species, so if there was hunting that _needed_ to be done or some kind of custom regarding death matches for superiority, there would be exceptions allowed. It was only cases of unnecessary and unnecessarily cruel turmoil that Aslaug was trying to solve.

Aslaug knew it would be a big task, but with some help from some of the nicer gods she managed to organize all of the notes and requests into a somewhat comprehensive pattern. Organizing everything felt like an eternity, even with help from others like Jederik. After she organized everything that needed to be _planned_ , she also needed to consider if there were going to be amendments in the future - since times changed - and how that would happen. Humans and supernaturals alike would evolve as times changed, perhaps even new species would come into play and there needed to be protocols for new life and how it was dealt with. Aslaug, as one of the original creators of this arrangement, would mediate so long as she was alive, so there was that to keep some peace for a while at least.

The gods would definitely be in charge of the judiciary system, particularly the gods that regularly did judging of moral cases anyway, along with some other gods so long as they were approved as non-bias. Sometimes having opinions from sources who were involved in a situation without being a judiciary god was useful. Since the highest tiers of gods were serious about keeping the peace, they made sure to register who was appropriate for certain tasks and who would need to get permission if they wanted to hold such important jobs.

Aslaug took into consideration all of the species that she could, going around and asking opinions on how getting a steady food source would affect their lives and whether they had any preferences to how and when they could get protection and resources. Some species opted out of certain things because they could handle tasks themselves, but they did have insurance plans in case things went badly. Aslaug imagined all the scenarios in the future where people could abuse the system and she tried to take them into consideration. She found herself having to write down everything on separate notes and reorganizing them later.

“Aslaug, you should get some sleep,” Jederik advised.

“Almost done,” she promised, though that was what she’d said the last ten times Jederik had tried to get her to rest.

Pip was standing beside Jederik, holding his hand, and looking on worried at Aslaug. Fáfnir had gotten sleep while Aslaug worked, which ended up giving her the illusion of rest. As such, she spent less and less time sleeping and more time working; she even began to neglect eating and drinking since she could sustain herself with her powers. Pip liked Aslaug; she was like Jederik in how determined she was to do good things despite how scary she looked. Pip supposed that it was a dragon thing. Pip liked helping Aslaug when they could, but like Jederik they were growing worried that Aslaug was overtaxing herself.

“Miss Aslaug, do you want to have dinner with us?” Pip asked.

“In a minute, sweetheart. I’m almost done.”

She blindly pet Pip, tangling her fingers through their tentacle hair and then carefully pulling her hand out, letting the living limbs slide between her fingers. Pip liked it when she did that; it reminded them of their parents and siblings. Touching their tentacles was normally an intimate act if it was done with anyone but Pip’s relatives, but after a small misdemeanor with Jederik, they all learned that Aslaug was extremely platonic in everything she did. Pip was small, but they were older than Jederik and even older than Fáfnir, it was implied. And they were middle-aged by their people’s standards. Pip was old enough to understand all the nuances of adulthood, though they often acted like a child because they were so cute.

“Oh, okay,” Pip said, waiting patiently at her side.

Aslaug often couldn’t stand up to Pip when they stayed and stared at her directly, but this time Aslaug wasn’t lying when she said that she was almost to a stopping point.

“There! Whoo, that’s…most things organized, anyway.”

“Dinner now?” Pip asked eagerly.

Aslaug nodded. “Dinner.”

“Yay!”

Pip’s skin colored flickered to different colors when their emotions fluctuated, and so often it was easy to tell what they were thinking without words. Pip flickered pink with excitement, and Aslaug honestly couldn’t deny them dinner now. Jederik, as Aslaug had learned, was the cooker in the relationship - though Pip _did_ try and was learning slowly but surely.

Aslaug had been hesitant to impose on their family, but Jederik insisted that if they were going to be working together, it’d be nice to have her around their place. Pip certainly liked the company, and Pip made her promise that they’d be best friends forever, and after that there was definitely no stopping their friendship. As if Jederik could resist anything Pip wanted anyway.

“How much longer until you’re done Miss Aslaug?” Pip asked.

“Dunno. I’m still in the process of just organizing all the plans. After that we need to deliberate with all of the gods involved and set up the system to completion. That’s going to take _ages_.”

“You’re really brave to take on all of this.”

“But don’t overwork yourself,” Jederik added. “You know that you’re not in this alone. Just because you’re _living_ with us doesn’t mean that we’re the only ones helping you.”

Lots of people came over to work with Aslaug, and she herself went out on trips as well. She never went through the front door, always using the Kavern to get where she needed to be fast. Fáfnir tried to complain, but eventually he just gave her full control and went to sleep out of his boredom. Aslaug compared it to how Lorcan would get bored and hand back control once threats were gone. She tried not to dwell on Fionn and the others too much. She had enough to deal with without having to think about their wellbeing. Her interactions with Phoenix were short and demanding, and she ignored anything about the rest of her family when Phoenix tried to mention them. She knew she wouldn’t be able to resist seeing them if she started thinking about them, if she got distracted from her task.

“Can’t you spare a day to go and visit your family?” Jederik asked. “It’s not healthy to ignore them for so long, surely. Do they even know what you’re doing?”

“No. We just went our separate ways for a while. I can go back to them whenever I want. I’d rather finish everything I’m doing now so that I don’t break my groove. This project takes a lot of time and concentration.”

Jederik nodded. “I suppose you’re right.” He really couldn’t argue with the fact that Aslaug had a lot on her shoulders, and getting distracted could end up ruining the whole system she was building. “Just do your best, Aslaug. And don’t hurt yourself in the process.”

Aslaug appreciated Jederik and Pip’s concerns for her; they were a kind couple who Aslaug truly _did_ value. She didn’t want to miss her family, but at the same time she knew that it was natural to miss them - if she didn’t, that’d be like saying that she never truly loved them at all. But for now, Jederik and Pip were her family.

Aslaug began the work of implementing her plans with the help of the gods.

Every god with followers gathered their people and informed them of the new plans. Any concerns that ever emerged would be passed to a respective god or otherwise any deity that heard a prayer. Each individual god would determine whether an issue was a problem or not and they would bring it to the judicial group to hear the case. Aslaug tried her best to make sure no one was left out.

Most of the gods were excited about it, and Aslaug made sure to address every one of them so that smaller voices were heard and all issues were handled. She didn’t want something to be ignored if only one person was brave enough to speak up about it, and no gods were allowed to be selfish and hold back demands. If any of the others found corruption, the higher-ups had to be informed to judge the situation. Aslaug had to address initial concerns from followers. She organized concerns ranging from selfish ones to actual concerns, from bigger, well-off people who were trying to continue to abuse the system (a system where there was no system) to smaller middle and lower class supernaturals who had actual issues because they were the ones constantly dealing with real problems.

Aslaug uncovered at least half a dozen corrupt kingdoms which the gods handled appropriately (there was a division for punishments from some of the more sadistic gods to work in) and Aslaug got to test out the judiciary system where transgressors had their pasts put on display and their crimes explained to the fullest. When there was a harsh history involved, when there were ransomed loved ones, when they were simply raised wrong - things like that were weighed by the unbiased opinions of some of the death gods who were used to judging a person’s entire life. They were also joined by living members, gods both sympathetic and harsh, who were there to judge a person’s potential in the future to be better and make up for their crimes. There was no lying to an entire court of gods who could see into your very soul. Some of the most crooked of the villains tried, and Aslaug found amusement as their smug smirks were wiped off their faces when their true natures were revealed and their flimsy defenses and attempts at bringing sympathy failed.

“It’s rocky, but not as bad as it could’ve been,” Jederik said. “You’ve done good work, Aslaug.”

“Well I might’ve failed if it weren’t for you, Jederik. You and Pip did more than you seem to think. You’re known as one of the founders of this system as well, along with everyone else on the council.”

A supernatural council had been founded so that the supernaturals could possibly govern themselves without having to bother the gods at all times. There was one of each supernatural creature (Jederik being the representative for dragons and Aslaug being a representative for half-bloods or otherwise partly human people) some immortal and some not, and whenever a new person had to rise to take another’s position, the gods would deem who was deserving of the position. The representatives should always have replacements in mind, and the gods would judge who got the position no matter what preferences were given initially. It might cause animosity for those who got their hopes up for the position, but the gods were regulated enough that there shouldn’t be doubt on who ascended to power. Aslaug trusted the gods; no matter how immature they might seem, their flippant personalities hid deadly personas that knew how to govern this world. Giving the current representatives the choice was there because some of them _could_ find worthy successors, but any corrupt intentions would be halted by the gods who held the final decision.

“Well, are you finally gonna go see your family?” Pip asked.

“I don’t know,” Aslaug admitted. “We’re still in the early days of the AEGIS Covenant…”

“Aslaug, you deserve a break,” Jederik insisted. “Your family must be worried about you; you haven’t even sent them letters about your activities. What if they think you perished?”

“Oh no!” Pip exclaimed.

“I’m sure they know. I’ve contacted Fionn’s brother, king of one of the faerie courts, as well as the gods are probably contacting Phoenix about these new plans and such; he’s surely heard the news.”

“Yeah, but having to hear something second-hand doesn’t inspire confidence. You should go see them, Aslaug. Pip and I can come with you, if you want.”

“We can meet Miss Aslaug’s family?” Pip asked.

Aslaug sighed. “Come now, Pip, you know that you and Jederik are my family as well now. I’ve been with you for…a while now, actually.” Aslaug had honestly lost track of the time. She started counting on her fingers, remembering the cycles that had passed and the events that she had celebrated passively with Jederik and Pip. “Oh, my…I think it’s been quite a few years.” Jederik opened his mouth to add something, but Aslaug went on mumbling. “Half a decade, perhaps. Surely it can’t have been that long. I spent a decade in Faerie, you know? Maybe more time has passed than I thought.”

Jederik sighed. “Well, you’re not wrong. Time in the gods’ dimension does work differently. You’ve only been gone for around eight or nine years, Aslaug, but the time you’ve spent in the godly realm has - according to some of the gods I’ve talked to - been around…twenty years? Likely more.”

“Twenty years of work?”

“In your defense, that’s how long it takes to get the gods organized for a whole new system of law. Honestly, you had it good. Performing such an amazing feat should’ve taken closer to a century, and it’s going to take many _more_ centuries for AEGIS to grow into a fully established and accepted system. The rest of us came and went to the godly realm and worked with you and the other gods, but you spent the most time there by far. Who knows? You might’ve been there even _longer_ than twenty years. After all, gods aren’t very good at keeping track.”

“I should really keep a journal,” Aslaug admitted. “In fact, I might just do that. Blimey, I’m already double my statistical age because of all these time-bending factors. I need to keep track of all this.”

Pip giggled. “Can I help you make your journal, Miss Aslaug?”

“Sure, little one.” She rubbed her hand on Pip’s smooth tentacle hair, which slid across her skin in adoration. “I’d love your help.”

“Jederik too!”

“As if he could say no to you, little button.”

She booped their nose and Pip giggled. Aslaug constantly had to remind herself that Pip was closing in on some 70 to 80 years old. Because Pip was a squid nymph, they could shift into a squid form that was about the size of a hawk, but in humanoid form they were around five foot three, which was fine - about the average height of a woman - but that was in comparison to Aslaug and Jederik, the former being close to (if not taller than) six foot and the latter being well over six foot. Considering that Vaan and Finnegan were around Aslaug’s height and Fionn and Kuria were taller, Pip was an adorable little bean compared to the people Aslaug was used to. She wouldn’t call their relationship romantic, but she could certainly say that she loved Pip.

“Remind me again how I can’t deny my mate anything they desire,” Jederik muttered, sounding only slightly exasperated.

“You love Pip, Jed. What’s so wrong with that? I don’t have a mate, I’m not sure I ever will. But I live through others, and that’s more than enough for me.”

Jederik frowned. “Aslaug…you said that your other companions were all in a relationship?”

“All of them except for Vaan, yes.”

“Have you ever considered that the reason you left them was because you desired a mate and children of your own? I’m not sure how much you know about mates, but supernatural creatures seek out their mate as soon as they can after reaching maturity. For dragons, that’s around 30 to 50 years of age. It’s natural for you to start developing the strong desire for a true mate and children, Aslaug. It can hurt you if you don’t find your mate before you turn 60. It can be physically and mentally painful, excruciatingly so. You’ve been so tied up in your work that I thought it was just the strain of such a big task. But now that I look at you, you look very sad and empty. You’re right, Aslaug, you’ve been living through the rest of us, and that’s how you’ve hidden and denied the symptoms for so long. That and you’re half human, meaning that there’s no telling what your condition truly is.”

“So…how bad does it get?”

“It varies from dragon to dragon, but you’ll fall into a deeper and deeper depression and it’ll become physically painful to move without your mate. Even so, you’ll be drawn to go and seek them out, and the same will be happening to them.”

Aslaug sighed. “I never wanted to be tied down by a mate. I was happy just watching other relationships bloom.”

“Aslaug, it’s not fair to your mate if you’re denying them the chance to be bonded to their other half. I don’t know how unique your situation is, but the fact is that you have another half out there, maybe more, and it’s going to kill you both if you don’t find each other.”

She shrugged. “Maybe I’ll find them, but I don’t have the first clue where to start.”

“How about we start with just going home and seeing your family? You need a break after all the work you’ve done and how strained your bond is becoming.”

Aslaug took a deep breath. “I’ll send a letter before we head there. Can we travel on foot? Honestly, I’m so exhausted from the gods’ realm and such that using the Kavern is probably going to give me a migraine.”

“That’s all right. You’re pretty sensitive right now, so we can take all the time you need.”

Aslaug didn’t like being called sensitive, but Jederik was right. According to him, she was prone to serious mental disorders while she was in this strained waiting period before meeting her mate. Going back and forth within the gods’ realm could’ve made things better or worse, there was no telling.

While it was true that Aslaug hadn’t written any letters to her family, they had written to her, leaving letters to fall through the Kavern. She had tried reading them when she’d had free time, but in the end, Jederik had to start reading them to her so that she could multitask, and eventually she started requesting that he just not read them anymore.

Svanhild had been formally courted by the court of Jörmunrek. Finnegan had said in one of the messages that at first the king himself had shown his interest in her, but luckily a man named Bikki - new to the kingdom but a wise advisor to the king - had recommended _against_ the old dude courting her, and instead opted for his son Randver to court her instead.

For some reason, hearing their messages about how happy Vaan seemed to be made Aslaug’s blood boil. She tried to focus on other things, like how they had named the baby they were raising Aysel and how she was growing to be a smart young girl. By Kuria’s guess, she was around ten years old (as of current days) and she was already learning from Vaan about all the herbs in her garden. Fionn expressed worry that Aysel would start learning to cast spells too soon and would be troublesome for them all. At one point, Finnegan nearly had a heart attack when Aysel sneezed and ended up teleporting across the building into Kuria’s lap. Luckily the djinn didn’t panic and caught the infant safely, but Finnegan was in another room halfway across the palace at the time and he had nearly gone mad finding Fionn, explaining what happened, and then seeking out where Aysel had ended up landing. Fionn gave a word-for-word paragraph on all the locations that Finnegan worried she could’ve traveled, ranging from the British Isles to the far south where there were said to be bugs so big they could eat babies whole. Aslaug had no idea where Finnegan learned _that_ bit of information, but if her experience with the gods was anything to go by, she had no trouble believing it. She’d seen bug gods, after all - human sized bug people.

Aslaug had a large pile of letters that had built up that she finally got to reading (she had stopped mostly because they started centering solely around Vaan’s courtship and Aslaug didn’t need to hear that). She read the stories about how Aysel was growing up, how she’d started growing a light blue hue to her skin and she’d started growing gills on her neck and fin-like tips to her ears. Aslaug wondered if she resembled Pip; maybe they were related somehow. They needed to give her specially-made gloves for her webbed fingers and toes, and her hair had ended up being pure white with light blue highlights. So long as they kept her bundled up she could hide as a human, so it was only during the winter that she was allowed to roam the human city. Otherwise, she was allowed to swim in the sea (in Jonakr’s kingdom, which was sea-side, not Gjúki’s kingdom, which was completely landlocked) and she spent half her time underwater (Kuria and Fionn had recommended it for her safety, actually).

As the letters went on, Aslaug read about how Aysel started growing fins on her forearms and legs and her skin grew a darker and darker blue until there was no natural tan left on her. Her fingers and toes sharpened to claw and fins, her ears fully merged with the fins to become what Aslaug assumed was the same as Pip’s fin-ears.

Finally, Kuria and Fionn had put together how to transform back into her human state, and it was only a matter of teaching her how to do it. When they finally managed it, Aysel could retract her fins, her sharp claws, and her skin returned to a more human tanned color. Her hair could be flipped to a midnight black, though still with her blue highlights. That was how they could start taking her out more often than just winter days - when once even those had started becoming more risky as it became harder to disguise her. They had been forced to consider keeping her shut in entirely when her eyes lost their pupils and seemed to become an endless void of stars, as Fionn described it.

Aslaug seriously began to wonder if Pip was at least the same species as Aysel.

According to Kuria, Aysel’s mother must have been a wandering trader of Oriental origin, which was made especially clear once Aysel managed her human form and was mistaken for Kuria’s biological daughter - her white hair being allowed to stay uncamouflaged since, as Aysel had rightly argued, Kuria was allowed to have white hair. She was learning to control her transformation, but it was an on and off thing. Luckily she seemed to have eventually gotten hold of herself with the prospect that she could go out into the kingdom without having to be bundled up in five layers of clothing.

“She sounds nice,” Pip said. “Can she be my friend?”

“She might be related to you somehow, like a distant cousin.”

“Oh, Pip and their kind consider _all_ oceanic creatures - especially supernaturals ones - as their cousins,” Jederik intervened. “The moment they lock eyes, there’ll be no stopping them. They’ll be all over each other in no time and considered family as if they’d grown up together this whole time.”

Aslaug didn’t miss the slightly jealous undertones in Jederik’s voice. Dragons, as Aslaug was learning, were very big and brutish creatures. They were possessive of what was theirs on top of being kleptomaniacs, and that included mates. Hell, even beings that _weren’t_ dragons were possessive of their mates, but dragons were already possessive already, so Aslaug could only assume the amount of self-control it took for him to let Pip interact with others, friendly as they were.

“With age comes wisdom and self-control,” Jederik shrugged. “But I’m not that old,” he added with a smirk.

“Just a couple decades apart in age,” Aslaug smirked.

“ _Less_ than _two_ decades apart.”

“More than one decade though!” Pip added. Aslaug had a sneaking suspicion that Pip did it just to make Jederik feel uncomfortable.

The dragon shifter cleared his throat. “Well, you must take into consideration that a decade or two in difference is minuscule compared to the many centuries I plan to spend by your side.”

Pip smiled, but a dark purple blush spread across their cheeks. Unlike Jederik, Pip was so adorable that there really wasn’t a way to embarrass such a cutie. Pip basically acted like they were smiling in front of a camera when they were embarrassed, as though showing off to the world rather than letting it get them down. A wise way of thinking, perhaps. Or Pip was just naturally a little bean without realizing it, but Aslaug didn’t think so considering how old they were and how creatures like Pip learned to use their cuteness to their advantage to be underestimated.

“Are we going soon, Miss Aslaug?” Pip asked.

“Sure,” she agreed. “Let’s go…home.”


	22. Return (Again)

Traveling on foot was entertaining for the small party, though they did get rides from other travelers who had wagons that they allowed the three to hitch a ride on in exchange for some gold. They enjoyed the wagon rides, actually, since while Aslaug and Jederik could walk for hours without getting tired (Jederik with Pip on his back for some of that time since Pip didn’t have nearly as much stamina, especially away from a stable body of water) they enjoyed time to just relax on the road.

Jederik had left the others in charge of his sanctuary, giving one of his most trusted the most power, and so they didn’t have to worry about the business. Aslaug sometimes had to take some mental calls from the gods or the supernaturals asking questions or giving complaints about the new system, but Jederik and Pip helped her so that she didn’t have much _real_ work to do.

Along the way, Aslaug filled in her memories in her journals. Though it seemed stupid, Aslaug knew that she’d find a time in the future where she couldn’t recall her past and what order everything happened in. She didn’t know if she had a regular human memory when it came to her eternal life. She had to use her powers to do some reorganizing when she thought about something to add, but reading aloud to Pip helped her greatly. With Pip unaware of her past, she learned what her story sounded like to someone who didn’t know her at all, meaning she was able to add more of the details than she could’ve possibly managed on her own - some of which she may have never thought of since they were basic facts in her mind and she’d never considered a need to reiterate.

“Another question,” Aslaug announced, pulling out a small device that resembled a compact.

It was a gift from the gods to help her work more efficiently. It was some sort of magic screen which Aslaug could interact with using only her finger, organizing her data and such in some sort of invisible space. It was kinda like her Kavern, just more compact and less…well, physical. It was magic, as far as Jederik was concerned. It beeped when the gods sent a message to her, and she could open it with a tap of a small circle at the side. Aslaug had found it odd at first, but she was a quick learner. Every button did something: there was a yes and a no button, directional arrows and a little bit that she could push in the direction she wanted the screen to react to, and she could pull out a small little stick thing to use as a writing utensil or she could just use the little buttons with pre-rendered characters on them to write. It took magical energies to power it - so meaning only a supernatural could access it, and even then it only reacted to her energy signature alone.

“Is it important?” Pip asked.

“Not really. Just a request that official duels be allowed to continue. There are many different words to describe it, but most supernatural creatures have a duel that involves a battle to the death or surrendering, and no one else is allowed to interfere; it’s one on one. It’s how leaders are chosen or binding deals are dealt with - if you can’t pay a debt you have the chance to fight for your life and you choose whether to die or to live with the consequences.”

Pip tapped their chin, pupil-less eyes aimed up at the stars. “My people have such things, yes, though we are a peaceful species. We rarely ever resort to such violence.”

“Those kinds of duels are obviously allowed, but there must be consent from both parties that they know what they’re agreeing to, and any signs of cheating will have the match automatically reset and rescheduled, delayed until both fighters are at full health.” Aslaug recited off the information, having memorized protocols by this point. “Like I said, not really important since we’ve already got an article about that in the books.”

“You’ve got everything down, don’t you?” Jederik smiled. “I’m not sure _why_ you insisted you shouldn’t be given much credit for this whole system when you’ve come up with and memorized most of the protocols.”

“I’d rather not have that kind of notoriety. Last thing I need are people either worshiping or cursing me or both. I’d rather not be known in the world.”

“At least _we_ know how amazing you are, Miss Aslaug,” Pip said.

“That’s all I really need. Just a few good people like you, Pip. I can appreciate you, you can appreciate me, and we can all get along with our lives mellow and nice. Until I wander off to blow something up, but right now I think I’ve bored Fáfnir into submission. My urge to go do or own something exciting has been quenched.”

Jederik’s concerned frown emerged. Aslaug liked to refer to it as ‘ _Thee Look_ ’ (partly for her own amusement) since he kept giving it to her whenever she mentioned that she was having some kind of mood swing that was out of the ordinary for her. She didn’t know how much Jederik knew about her odd condition, but he knew about regular dragons, and he must be very concerned for her if he kept giving her Thee Look. He continued mentioning hints about mates, but Aslaug wasn’t sure if she thought she was feeling out of it because of the whole mates thing or if she was just overworked from the years of work on the AEGIS Covenant that she was developing.

They stopped by a lake so that Pip could refresh; being a squid nymph meant that they needed water occasionally, and if ever injured, water was a good way to heal them. Pip could use a glamour to disguise themself as human, but whenever they went swimming they liked to show their true colors, flashing blue and green with contentment and relaxation. There were times, Jederik said, that Pip fell asleep in the water, and Jederik had to fish them out or even just left them there until morning. Though Jederik didn’t like sleeping without his mate, and Pip usually woke in the middle of the night to join Jederik eventually.

“How far are we from this kingdom of your family’s?” Jederik asked.

“Another day away, perhaps?” Aslaug guessed. “I suppose I should warn you now that my sister, Svanhild, doesn’t know that we’re related. Her father is my father, but we never grew up together, and our father had some complicated circumstances.”

During their final day of walking, Aslaug did her best to explain everything she could that she thought Jederik and Pip would need to know.

“Why don’t you want her to know who you are?” Pip asked.

“Because we are related only by blood. I never knew my father; she _barely_ knew our father. And she holds some animosity towards my mother. I don’t want our relationship to be based on our origins. We became friends because of who we are, who we grew up to be without our parents’ interests influencing us.”

“But if she has romantic intentions towards you…” Jederik frowned. It wasn’t Thee Look, but it was still a concerned frown.

“We’ve let it go,” Aslaug dismissed. “She’s being courted anyway, by a royal family too. She’s better off with someone like her step-father who will look after her properly after all that her family’s gone through.”

“Has _she_ agreed to this consensus?”

“I’m fairly certain.”

He sighed, but Pip patted him on the shoulder in consolation. There was sometimes no getting around Aslaug’s logic.

By the time they reached the kingdom, the sun was setting, but Aslaug knew they could make it to the palace and have the guards let them in. The Guard at the palace were her friends, and especially if Finnegan and the others had been living there all this time, Aslaug would be well-known.

It occurred to her along the way how much her comrades might’ve changed. Sure, she had planned to leave them for a while, but not nearly as long as she had. She had just gotten caught up in the AEGIS Covenant and it had taken her far longer than she had anticipated. Time had passed without much linearity, and she had barely registered the passing days, months, years, and decades. Even though she had only been gone for around eight or nine years from their perspective, as Jederik had estimated, that was still such a long time to be away from them.

She wondered if even Kuria had changed. She missed Kuria, having her servant following her around. She had found herself requesting things of Kuria without him being there, and Jederik and the others had done their best to conform. Phoenix probably knew about her work if he was doing some communicating even from within Fionn, but Aslaug figured Phoenix would never change. Gods had this thing where they didn’t evolve very often like humans usually did. At their core, they’d never change. Finnegan was probably at the biggest risk of changing, Vaan too. They were humans, and humans changed every day. Forget ten years, they could be unrecognizable after a few months.

Aslaug headed to the front gates and told them her name, asking if Vaan or any of the others were there. She was invited in along with her friends, and Aslaug recognized Ludovico. Aslaug was guided to a room to stay with Jederik and Pip and she would meet the others in the morning. Aslaug felt a pang of guilt and pain at knowing that she wasn’t allowed in her old room with Finnegan, Fionn, and Kuria. She supposed that they’d go somewhere different once they had a baby to look after, and even different as that child grew. If the letters sent had been any indication, they’d followed Vaan back and forth between her two kingdoms. They were in King Jonakr’s realm right now, the place they had parted. Luckily they were here for now.

Aslaug should feel relieved that she was back. She was back with her family; it should feel like she was back home. But she still felt like an outsider looking in.

Aslaug was reminded of the early days with Fáfnir, when the dragon had been trying to convince her to work with him to meet his needs. He said he was the only one that would ever be with her forever. Aslaug had started to realize the truth in that statement.


	23. Stranger in a Familiar Land

The next morning, Aslaug had tied her hair into at least five different braid styles before she had even left her room. She realized that it was something she did when she was meeting someone she was nervous to meet. She was rarely nervous to meet people. The last time this had happened, she had been nervous to meet Finnegan who she was proposing to marry.

Pip was confused, since tangling their tentacles either meant they were in pain or they were having sex. Jederik had intervened quickly to again explain how dragons and humans didn’t have hair that worked like Pip’s tentacle hair. He reminded Aslaug of Finnegan when he stuttered at Fionn or Kuria’s blunt comments about their relationship. Aslaug smiled at Jederik and Pip, but she felt more longing towards her own family.

Even looking down at her long orange hair reminded her of Finnegan’s similar hair and Fionn’s unnaturally red hair that shimmered like fire. Pip could mimic Fionn’s hair color at times, with the same supernatural glimmer, but it took some concentration for them to mimic Aslaug’s dull, human, orange hair - though Pip had stated that it was very pretty because it was so rare in the supernatural world.

Aslaug’s hair had grown out a lot since she’d left, and her work had left her little time to maintain proper hygiene. Her hair was getting poofy, even when she washed it, and it was getting long. Braiding it caused it to curl up, not nearly as intensely as Finnegan’s curly hair, but Jederik commented that it was a good look for her. Pip didn’t really know much about human hairstyles, so he simply said she looked fierce with red hair, since red and orange meant fierce for their kind. Aslaug appreciated Pip trying. Again reminding herself that Pip was decades older than her, she had to remember that behind their innocent façade was a wise creature who knew how to make other creatures smile - like an adult comforting a small child.

Half of Aslaug’s hair was braided by the time she’d reached the dining hall where they were to meet her friends.

Pip was restless in their seat while Jederik was trying to keep them calm. He ended up pulling Pip into his lap where Pip easily calmed down and snuggled Jederik, who took in their scent while Pip’s tentacle hair seemed to caress him. Jederik unconsciously twirled some of Pip’s hair in his hand. Aslaug assumed it was a mate thing. They were always being a cute couple like that.

“Master!”

Aslaug almost didn’t recognize Kuria’s voice, but it was familiar enough that her mind only hesitated a moment before recognizing him. But seeing him was truly a sight for sore eyes. Kuria hadn’t changed, she hadn’t expected him to change much, if at all. But he seemed so animated as he ran forward to catch Aslaug in a hug almost before she had managed to stand from her seat at the table. Had she been any more fragile, she might’ve tipped over completely and knocked the chair down as well.

“Kuria! I…it’s good to see you so…suddenly!”

“Master, may I serve you once more?” Kuria asked pleadingly. The djinn pulled back abruptly.

Aslaug blinked, slightly dazed. “Of course you can. Why would you ever think you can’t?”

“He worried he’d be serving us forever and you’d never return,” Finnegan interjected. “Honestly, I was worried myself. It’s been so long, Aslaug, and you just vanish on us, not responding to our messages, and I hear from Phoenix that you’ve been traveling around, busy with some kind of work, and you couldn’t even stop by once for a visit?! Or at least send a message that you’re not _dead?!_ ”

“Finnegan,” Fionn chided, grabbing his arm.

The faerie hadn’t changed much, though he _was_ wearing some new hunting garments that looked to be a combination of his faerie garb and human fabric. He was trying to placate the quickly raging Finnegan. Aslaug saw that his natural air of elegance still hadn’t left him. She wondered if he’d made many trips to Faerie. She tried to remember if he’d mentioned trips to Faerie in his letters.

“Hey! Don’t yell at Miss Aslaug!” Pip protested, looking ready to strangle the human with his bare hands (or his living tentacle hair) if Jederik hadn’t quickly tightened his grip around the squid nymph’s waist. Pip had the ability to escape Jederik; their hair could release stingers that could hurt even Jederik, from a small prick to a painful one. They could inject numbing agents, poison, or aphrodisiac. Anything Pip had experience with, really, and they could make new things with some practice under the right conditions. But Pip was more than aware enough to not harm their mate if they didn’t have to.

Finnegan had changed less than Aslaug had anticipated, but she was still surprised by his development. He looked…bigger. Not physically, but just his presence seemed more imposing. Aslaug started to try and put together why. He looked older, not much older physically, but much older mentally. For a man in his forties, he looked like he’d aged decades more yet was still young as when she’d met him. He had a bit of stubble, he was wearing peasantry clothes like he’d just come back from chopping down a forest like a lumberjack, he looked like he’d somehow managed to get a slight tan despite his genes making it so that he burnt rather than browned, and his curly hair had grown out and was held in a pony tail behind him. Compared to Fionn beside him, who had completely smooth skin, who stood elegantly like royalty at all times, who couldn’t get a tan even if he jumped into the sun, and who dressed like a sleek warrior and a prince no matter what mode of dress he was going for, Finnegan looked downright rugged. Aslaug could only imagine how much Fionn and Kráka enjoyed that, considering both of them were supernatural creatures who maintained their perfection almost biologically. Fionn had to work hard to keep his scars, and even then you might miss most of them if you weren’t looking hard enough.

“Who’s this?” Kuria asked, booping Pip’s nose. Kuria still stared at the squid nymph with a blank face, but Aslaug wondered if Kuria had always just walked up to new things and tapped them.

“I’m Pip,” they said.

Finnegan’s eyes narrowed. “You have a _child_ , Aslaug? What? You left us because we have a kid to raise and you go and get one of your own?”

Jederik’s eyes narrowed and he released his grip on Pip. “You should really tame your human, faerie. He’s got quite a sharp tongue on him.”

“I’m not a _child!_ ” Pip whined.

“I am called Kuria,” Kuria introduced, as though the animosity around him wasn’t happening. At least _that_ part about him hadn’t changed. He extended his hand and shook one of Pip’s tentacle hair strands.

Pip looked Kuria up and down before reaching up and patting Kuria on the head like he was a pet. “I like you, Kuria. I’m-” Pip articulated his unpronounceable name. “But you may call me Pip. Who is your rude human and why does he speak so harshly of Miss Aslaug?”

“That human is called Finnegan, and he appears to be having a troublesome day. His rancor appears to be drawn from a multitude of factors.” Kuria leaned in close and held his hand up to whisper, though he was loud enough for everyone with sensitive hearing to hear - so everyone except Finnegan. Even Finnegan could hear if he paid close enough attention. “He loves Master, and Master being away for so long caused him great turmoil. He was in turmoil for all the time they were apart.”

Pip pulled back with a gasp. “Like a soul-mate!”

Kuria nodded. “Relatable to a very platonic soul-mate.”

“Did you hear, Jederik?!” Pip pulled on his mate’s arm and tried to shake him, though the dragon was very heavy (something about his condensed form as a shifter that could turn into an enormous dragon) and he barely moved from Pip’s shaking. “Soul-mates!”

“Hm, interesting,” Jederik mused. “Perhaps you already _had_ met your soul-mate, but he was completely platonic, so you didn’t notice. A lot of creatures don’t realize that soul-mates can agree to be completely platonic and more like the closest of siblings: inseparable, but not in love and they don’t need sex or anything romantic. They still must consummate their bond somehow, but now with sex, just something very binding. After they are bound, they are able to be apart for longer periods and the intense effects of separation lessen.”

“That doesn’t mean they aren’t still very possessive of each other in some way,” Pip added, practically wrapped around Jederik’s arm. It was unclear whether he was talking about Jederik, himself, or both. Aslaug would assume both, if everything that she’d seen of them was anything to go by. “Not that that’s a bad thing. And it mostly happens with romantic mates anyway. Soul-mates can be anything. _Mate_ mates can just be romantic.”

“Aslaug, while Finnegan’s approach was very out of place, your absence was trouble disquieting,” Fionn interjected.

“Sorry,” Aslaug said. She wished she could convey all of her feelings within that one word. “I was very busy working on this thing-”

“And she took it upon herself to micromanage every aspect because she couldn’t trust anyone else to do anything without her,” Jederik interrupted. “We had to remind her to even _eat_ , and forget sleeping. I knocked her out with a few dozen doses of sleeping powder and she _still_ went on without realizing it for another hour before she finally collapsed.”

“I did?” Aslaug frowned. “I don’t remember that.”

“Because the moment you got up you started writing down notes. I think you actually spoke to some deities in your sleep. Honestly, I’ve never met anyone so stubborn, and I grew up in a tribe of dragon shifters. Some of them aren’t even shifters, they’re just _dragons_. In general. They can’t even _pretend_ to be human. And I have _Pip_ as a mate. When Pip wants something, Pip gets it. You are more stubborn than _Pip_.”

She snorted. “That’s only because you literally couldn’t deny Pip anything and you’d tear down the skies if it started upsetting them.” Aslaug turned to face the others. “Guys, this is Jederik and his mate Pip, if you hadn’t already realized.” She pointed to them in turn as she spoke. “Dragon-shifter, squid nymph. They ended up taking me in while we worked on the AEGIS Covenant.”

“What’s that supposed to be?” Finnegan asked, crossing his arms.

He looked so uncharacteristically…parent-like. Aslaug should’ve expected it since he had been raising a kid, but Aslaug couldn’t possibly fathom why _she_ was getting the ‘naughty-kid’ treatment. If he was angry at her, the least he could do was treat her like a grown adult.

“It’s a new system of law regarding the balance between supernaturals and humans,” Fionn provided. “Phoenix has been involved in the making of the Covenant, as have all the rest of the gods. It’s taken time to establish a system, and it will take much more to properly implement it. I admire your bold actions, Aslaug, and further I admire your perseverance. I retain perturbation at your lack of visitation, but I understand why you were very preoccupied.”

“Well _I_ still don’t think you couldn’t have at least sent messages that you were okay, that you hadn’t abandoned us completely, that you hadn’t collapsed from overworking yourself,” Finnegan grumbled. “I was worried about you, Aslaug, we _all_ were. I thought…I thought you’d be back in a couple weeks, or at least that you’d leave some kind of message in the Kavern. Maybe you didn’t want to be here for Aysel’s infant years, but…she’s a grown child now. You…you’re our family, Aslaug. You should’ve at least been there _somehow_ to raise her.”

Aslaug let out a humorless chuckle. “I’m not sure what it would’ve been like if I saw Aysel grow. We can’t change that now. I honestly _did_ intend to return in less than a year, I swear. I couldn’t have predicted what happened. It’s just…once I got started, I couldn’t stop before I had everything in order or I would lose the drive to complete it in the first place. There _needs_ to be a system in place for supernaturals - to protect both supernaturals and humans alike. Even if it needs some work as time goes on, I just wanted to establish something to start on. Once I made my proposal to some of the higher-tier gods - thanks to Phoenix and his connections - I knew that there was actually a chance we could do this. They agreed to help and to enforce things; all I had to do was build the foundations from the perspective of a halfie.”

“Halfie?” Finnegan repeated.

“Half supernatural, half human,” Kuria provided. “The term ‘halfie’ is slang often used in the supernatural world. Humans might call them demi-gods, Nephilim, warlocks, half-bloods, one-eyes, etc., depending on what creature their supernatural part is. Humans are diverse to the point that they can breed with most supernaturals, though the process holds varying degrees of risk.”

“Like Aysel.”

Aslaug nodded. “Come to think of it, where _is_ Aysel?”

“She’s in the pool room. Depending on the time of month, she prefers to be in her water form more often.”

“The cycle develops to the pattern of the moon’s faces,” Fionn explained.

“There’s a pool room?” Pip asked in awe. “I didn’t know humans could make those!”

“ _Humans_ cannot,” Fionn agreed with his signature faerie-like smirk.

Aslaug hadn’t realized how much she missed that coy smirk. She’d missed them all, all of their quirky traits and distinct personalities. Problem was, Finnegan changed a lot, where Fionn and Kuria were limited in their growth. She felt the sudden urge to embrace them all, hug them tight and never let go.

So she did.

She snatched Kuria, marched up to Finnegan and Fionn, and then used her radius for the reach to pull them all into her embrace. Fionn still smelled of his fiery, smoky scent, but it had been mellowed out since she’d last remembered taking in his smell. Kuria remained scentless and he was cool to the touch, limp as he didn’t tense in surprise nor return the embrace without the explicit order. Still, his presence and his true self hidden within brought her comfort; just touching him seemed to ease some of her worries.

Finnegan was in the center, and though Aslaug couldn’t wrap her arms around him, she held him close with her radius and rested her chin on his shoulder.

“I missed you,” she admitted. “I missed you all.”

“We were very sad when you were not with us,” Kuria agreed.

“Truly, we did desire your presence,” Fionn continued. “Finnegan’s ire is born of longing and pain of our separation.”

Aslaug allowed the three of them to pull back. She hugged Kuria personally, to which the djinn responded with his normal bubbly personality that emerged once he was given permission to show affection. It might have just been Aslaug being sentimental, but it almost seemed like Kuria was even more animated than she remembered. She sensed the content Kráka within him, and Aslaug felt like she was floating on a cloud and could just fall asleep. She embraced Fionn next, who actively stepped into the hug. His grip was firm, and Aslaug could sense the multiple different reactions of contentment from within Fionn. It was rare that Fionn’s personalities could come to an agreement, so she felt honored that all of Fionn had missed her and were welcoming her back. His steady yet chaotic presence was so relaxing for both Aslaug’s human and dragon side. She was warm and content with Fionn there; a fire to sit beside during a quiet evening, a raging blaze that both quenched her burning soul and fed its flames.

Finally, there was Finnegan. He stared at her a long time. Aslaug still couldn’t believe how much he’d changed. His eyes looked so much older, yet the rest of him was still a middle-aged man in his prime. Aslaug found the urge to tame his curly hair, and-

“For the gods’ sakes, I hope you’re not _actually_ planning on growing a beard,” she blurted.

Finnegan blinked in surprise. Then, a light blush crept across his face and he averted his gaze. “No…”

“Fionn likes his stubble but Aysel hates when it pokes her,” Kuria provided. “Fionn does not grow facial hair; he finds it sexy on Finnegan.”

“ _Kuria!_ You don’t have to tell her that!” Finnegan managed to blush like the young boy Aslaug had met so long ago, falling head-over-heels for a faerie and slowly coming to accept a djinn.

“I quite like it myself,” Kuria continued.

Fionn smirked. “He does not _have_ to speak, but that does not mean he _can_ not.”

“You’ve been teaching him,” Finnegan accused. “Traitor.”

Fionn pulled Finnegan into a searing kiss that served no purpose other than to distract Finnegan and possibly embarrass him further. At least _that_ had never changed about their dynamic, especially considering Finnegan instantly melted into his faerie’s embrace. He still couldn’t win when it came to getting kissed by his lovers. Must’ve been a soul-mate thing.

Jederik covered Pip’s eyes, but the squid nymph just giggled and said, “Why are you covering _my_ eyes? I’m older than you and we’ve done much worse.”

Jederik cleared his throat, but said nothing. Fionn released Finnegan, looking none the worse for wear, but Finnegan still took some time to recover. Aslaug giggled. Same old Finnegan, no matter how angry he was at her.

“Look, Finn, I’m sorry that I was gone so long. I won’t let it happen again, so long as I can help it.”

He sighed. “I suppose that’s the best I can expect of you. But I’ve lived with two people who physically cannot lie, so it’s not like I’m not used to it. And it’s not like I’m not used to _you_.”

“Forgive and move on with our lives?”

“It’s not _that_ simple.” He rolled his eyes. “ _But_ …I suppose we can at least agree to try and work things out. You owe me, though. You’re gonna spend the rest of my life making this up to me.”

“I expect no less.”


	24. Dragons

“So you’re a part of an actual _tribe_ of dragons?” Finnegan mused.

Jederik nodded. “I was raised in the high peaks of a mountain further southeast. Dragons enjoy tough climates and settling there, as if to fight against nature itself. Depending on the tribe and the location of the dragon’s origins, we can gain abilities and traits depending on the climate and circumstances around us. I was once a mountain dragon, but I do a lot of traveling for my tribe since I’m a diplomat. Normally only shifters _can_ be diplomats, since taking on a human form is often considered a sign of power in most supernatural societies.”

“Really? I’d assume that human form would be…I don’t know, taboo. Not a lot of supernaturals like humans, you know. We’re a…controversial species.”

“Yes, you are considered very dangerous and erratic. That notoriety earns you some reverence from the more…fierce side of the supernatural world. To be able to hide among humans, to have the potential to learn and develop beyond the limits of your biology and species - we consider such a thing controversial, but it is silently yet widely accepted as a very valuable trait.”

“So then, what is Aslaug considered, if she’s not a shifter like you?”

“Well, with some experimentation, I know Aslaug can take on Fáfnir’s form; her body is built with high energy levels and a dense mass that proves she has the potential. Shifters are born in both forms, but they are often taught to shift at a young age to get them through the most painful part quickly and before they are old enough to truly remember the harrowing experience. She is still a shifter, but she was born human and raised human. I was born a dragon, so I’m told, but I was a quick shifter.”

“Being born as Fáfnir is complicated,” Aslaug continued. “Fáfnir was once human, but his greed and twisted nature turned him _into_ a dragon. On top of that, I was born of two human parents - special humans, but humans nonetheless. They ate the heart of Fáfnir to transfer Fáfnir to me; I wasn’t just born a regular dragon - not even a half-blood, though that is what most will default to calling me.”

“So you’re a special case of a special case of a special case,” Finnegan summarized. “You are just a serious anomaly.”

“On top of that, it looks like she has three platonic mates,” Pip pointed out, one of their tentacle hair thingies scratching their chin and one scratching their head as if puzzled. “Who’d’ve thunk it?”

“Is that a real word?” Aslaug asked, breaking the moment.

“Nevermind that,” Finnegan urged. “What’s all this about soul-mates?”

“I believe Pip means to say Aslaug is another of our soul-mates,” Fionn explained. “It is common for supernaturals to have a multitude of mates - some will be romantic, others platonic. Many mates will only meet one of their other parts. It is truly a shame that humans believe all relationships and mates are monogamous. Often love will fade soon after the initial spark of romance simply because they did not seek out the remaining parts of their soul. Some relationships and mates are monogamous, but far from all of them.”

“The most intense relationships between couples that last for eternity are monogamous soul-mates, who have managed to unite all of their soul fragments - as souls are fragmented specifically into a predetermined amount of parts,” Jederik explained. “It often takes only a single encounter to appease one’s soul and steady a relationship. Even if you pass by your mate every once in a while and never even know they are your mate, that can still calm the fires within and allow a steady relationship. You could pass by your local baker on your way to work every day and that can ensure your romantic success. That’s also how affairs happen, but because most humans believe you can have only one romantic partner, it ends in tragedy no matter who is chosen. Supernaturals have an advantage over regular mortal humans because each of us has enchanted means of finding our soul-mates and a stronger bond when we do. Soul-mates don’t always get it right, but that’s why they are reborn and reshuffled across the ages. There are some gods who have the sole job - pun intended - of reorganizing souls and fragmenting them.”

“And then others make it _their_ sole job to ship them together by any means necessary,” Aslaug complained. “Wars have been fought because certain gods approved of couples that didn’t work or get together mates that _did_ work but with horrifically uncalled for methods. I had to make a category specifically for the sake of romance gods who feel that meddling in the lives of mortals in the name of love is _such_ a great plan.”

“In the AEGIS Covenant,” Pip explained, seeing the confusion on Finnegan’s face.

“You really thought of everything in that Covenant, huh?” Finnegan couldn’t hide the amazement in his voice.

Aslaug nodded. “Everything that I could manage. I just need more human acceptance of the AEGIS Covenant, which is going to take some time as I seek out the right people to ask for cooperation. Slowly, the Covenant will spread across the lands and _everyone_ will follow the laws laid out. And everyone will be allowed to have a voice in the Covenant as well. I want to hear everything. I want to hear problems from those who can still be abused by the system and find those who can still abuse it.”

“That doesn’t really sound like you,” Finnegan admitted. “You’ve always been more of a free spirit.”

“And I still am. I just want to get this system in place before I start journeying again, doing what I normally do - anything that I want, whenever I want.”

“Will you allow us to accompany you, to stand by your side?” Fionn asked.

Aslaug smiled. “Of course. I want nothing more and nothing less. Besides, I’ve missed Kuria being around to help me with my tasks and get things done without having to worry about failure.”

“Thank you Master!” Kuria piped up.

“Now, where is Vaan?”


	25. Vaan's Courtship Confusion

“Where in the world is _that?_ ”

“Somewhere further east, as far as I’m aware,” Finnegan said.

“Beyond even the kingdom of Gjúki,” Fionn added. “Within the steppe. A very grand expanse of peoples. I believe they are Goths.”

“What kind of word is a ‘Gogh?’” Aslaug tried saying the word with more of an accent. It sounded Dutch or something.

“Goth,” Kuria corrected. “A Greuthungian King. King Jörmunrek seems to have taken a liking to the lady Svanhild in recent days.”

“I think I remember reading about that in your letters. Didn’t his advisor Bicke recommend his son instead?”

“ _Bikki_ recommended that King Jörmunrek send his son Randver win the lady Svanhild’s affections.”

“For Jörmunrek or for Randver?”

“In what manner?” Fionn asked.

“Did Bikki recommend that Randver win her affections to marry Randver, or did he recommend that Randver win her over in Jörmunrek’s name?”

Finnegan opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He hesitated, and Aslaug could see his eyes dart around as he tried to recall. “I…don’t remember. Kuria?”

“I believe the message is unclear to all parties,” Kuria answered. “Jörmunrek was led to believe Randver is winning her affections for himself, whether that be to marry his son or to actually court her in Jörmunrek’s name, that has not been specified. Randver appears to believe that he is winning lady Svanhild’s affections for his father’s sake by courting her himself, to bring her into their family line. Through a series of miscommunications, they are all doing what they believe to be right, and they all believe that they are working to a single goal, though what that goal is varies from each of them.”

“Has…Vaan told you a lot about this? Does she know about this confusion?”

“She spoke fondly of Randver,” Fionn informed her, though his flat tone suggested he still remembered Aslaug’s…complication when it came to Vaan. “She also communicates with the King Jörmunrek directly and through Bikki.”

“Have any of you been to meet these people? Randver, Jörmunrek, and this…Bikki?”

Finnegan shook his head. “We didn’t even know about them for a while. Vaan said she didn’t want to tell us since she didn’t consider them anything more than more diplomatic allies at the beginning. She started making more trips to their kingdom, and eventually we got her to admit that she suspected she was being courted. Honestly, with all the stories she told us, I’m surprised she didn’t notice it earlier. Or perhaps she was in denial. I think she still is, at times.”

“I would hardly trust Vaan’s safety if none of you have even _met_ them.”

“She assured us that we might learn more of her affairs soon,” Fionn said. “Though that is merely her word; loathe am I to trust her judgement alone, and yet I am evermore displeased with the invasion of her privacy and the displacement of her trust.”

Aslaug sighed. “Is she going to be back soon?”

“She takes trips about a fortnight each time, so she should be back within the week if there weren’t any delays,” Finnegan said. “Though there are often delays,” he admitted.

Aslaug frowned. “By keeping you all here, she prevents you from using the Kavern to go there instantly since you don’t know precisely where you’re going. Sneaky. Very sneaky. That combined with the threat of invading her privacy manages to keep you all at bay, plus the fact that Kuria’s orders might interfere as well, keeping all of you from finding out where she is and who she’s with. Ugh, that irks me to the core. She could be in danger, regardless of how tough she is. She should at least make sure that _someone_ knows where she goes. Oh, that reminds me. Did we ever figure out if Kuria’s powers work when taking orders from Vaan?”

“I will obey Lady Svanhild’s commands to the best of my ability, but my orders are not absolute, Master,” Kuria replied. “Your orders upon your former departure were to treat Lord Finnegan and Lord Fionn as my new Masters until your return. Because that order came from you and not Lady Svanhild, I value their orders more than hers; I valued their orders as though they were coming from your own mouth. Though she is technically Master, she is not above the authority of you, Master.”

Aslaug didn’t want to admit how relieved she felt to know that she had absolute power over Kuria - mostly because that would sound vain no matter how she phrased it. She didn’t like the idea of anyone else having power over Kuria, making him do things against her will. She didn’t want Kuria doing anything stupid that Aslaug didn’t approve of, but she also didn’t want anyone to use Kuria to hurt Finnegan or Fionn. She knew that would absolutely break her heart, and she’d rip apart anyone who had the power to hurt them, even if it was Vaan herself. Aslaug had always felt unease about that, but so long as Vaan was unaware of her power over Kuria and Aslaug made sure to tell Kuria explicitly not to follow Vaan’s orders, Aslaug was…well, not _okay_ with letting things be, but she managed to suppress her feelings.

Perhaps Pip and Jederik were right; she _was_ soul-mates with all of these people - Fionn, Finnegan, and even Kuria. She hadn’t realized how empty she had felt without them, and how whole she felt now that she was back. Being away from them for so long and returning must’ve intensified her emotions, which Jederik said would and could happen. Meeting a soul-mate for the first time after a long search or even returning to them after a long period apart would be so emotional that most would break down in tears from relief alone. Aslaug admitted that she felt a warm knot in her chest like a raging storm ready to let her tears flow free. She had many years of hiding her feelings, which was why she didn’t break down crying yet, but she felt her eyes trying to betray her every second. Talking was helping distract her at least.

Aslaug couldn’t help herself in that moment, however, and she pulled Kuria into a tight hug that she knew the djinn could feel but wasn’t harmed from. She felt that oddly pleasing feeling as she held his solid form within her grasp. He was warm and breathing; she could feel his heartbeat. “Glad you’re not forced into getting into trouble.”

“We had many adventures, Master.” Kuria patted her back as though he was consoling a pet. “You must learn of them all before you come to such conclusions.”

“ _Fionn?_ ” Aslaug grumbled without pulling back from Kuria.

“We…traversed many realms of security,” Fionn admitted.

Aslaug grabbed him with her radius and pulled him into the hug as well, resting her head on his shoulder. “Stubborn faerie. I hope you didn’t let them get into _too_ much trouble.”

“No one has perished.”

“Such high standards.” She pulled back and booped them both on the nose. “I want to hear everything. And I want to meet this Aysel, too.”

Fionn nodded. “We should join her soon. She must grow wary of our prolonged absence. Introductions are surely in order. I presume that-” Fionn did something truly surprising and pronounced Pip’s full name, which the squid nymph had announced in passing to them though none of them expected anyone to be able to pronounce it, let alone remember it. “-would be pleased to make their acquaintance with Aysel, as they appear to be similar in species.”

Pip strobed green and blue with joy, their tentacles curling up to frame their face in a shocked motion. “You remembered! Jed, he said my name!”

Jederik frowned deeply and pulled Pip close almost possessively, resting his head at the crook of their neck and closing his eyes to take in their scent. Aslaug noticed that scent was something that greatly enticed Jederik (she assumed it could be a mate thing or a dragon thing or both) and he used it also when he was becoming insecure or worried about Pip. Since she herself was feeling particularly sensitive, it wasn’t hard for Aslaug to guess that Jederik was upset and jealous that he couldn’t even pronounce his mate’s full name - and worse yet someone else _could_. She could just _feel_ his pang of emotions flowing through the air, and she sympathized for him. It was almost like Fáfnir was humming along with empathy as well, which was odd for him.

A mate thing. Mates could sense other mates, Jederik had told her, so that they could tell when someone was claimed by another mate. Werewolf packs could have dozens of mated pairs or groups in their packs and families, and they gathered together to share both joy and pain since if a mate was feeling down, so too would every other mated individual within the same household. Werewolves were the most obvious example, but any supernatural creature could sense a mated pair if they just focused hard enough. Scent was the most obvious way to sense mated beings, but Aslaug could sense them through her radius, for example. The vibes she was getting from Jederik were even making _her_ feel depressed.

The squid nymph was surprised for only a moment before giggling and letting their hair wrap around Jederik reassuringly. “Don’t worry,” they said gently. Their voice was light but firm, spoken only to Jederik, revealing the age and wisdom hiding behind Pip’s innocent façade. “No matter what you call me, I’ll always love you most. You could call me ‘The squid guy’ and I’d still swoon.”

Aslaug could feel the relief in the air as Jederik kissed Pip’s neck and seemed to relax at their words. She could tell that Fionn was going through a similar state as his gaze softened at the pair. Kuria even smiled brightly.

Finnegan blinked, the only human in the room, and even though he was mostly attuned to his own soul-mates with his Io and all, he was still the least sensitive to anything related to mates. He looked utterly lost, even if he _did_ sort of understand that loving…love was in the air…somehow?

“What is happening?”


	26. The Final Fragment

“This soul-mates stuff is starting to hurt my brain,” Finnegan sighed.

“Think of it this way,” Aslaug suggested as they walked through the halls of the palace. “When you’re having sex-”

“Nope!” Finnegan blurted, covering his ears. “Nope, nope, nope!”

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “Fine. When…ugh…when you’re…with Renna! Yes! Whenever you’re with Renna, you get extremely protective and attached to her almost possessively, right? Because you’re worried about her safety, because she’s smaller than you, because you just like being her protector. That’s the kind of feeling that most supernaturals get about their mates. Now obviously you’re like that with _all_ of Fionn’s variations, but the point remains the same. You love your mates and always want them safe and by your side and the fire that keeps you together and connected and loving never fades. That’s what happens when soul-mates have been fully united; a soul that has been split among any number of parts finally comes together at its fullest state.”

“So do most soul-mates get split into four parts?”

“Not all of them, no, but the majority are usually more than just two. Humans have soul-mates, some of them supernaturals, some of them human, but because humans think that there is _always_ only _one_ soul-mate for them, they often never find their other parts and end up letting their connection become poisoned and whither away without their complete bond. Sometimes one of them ends up finding their other part and can’t help but begin an affair with them, but then it becomes a choice between one or the other, and the newest bond will always be the strongest. But even then, the one that you have an affair with may not be the last soul-mate you need, and since you’ve driven away the first, you may never be happy. That’s the endless spiral of disaster you humans create by thinking monogamous relationships are the only way to go.”

“Not _all_ of us,” Finnegan argued. “Though I will admit, those guys preaching from their books about their god declaring monogamous relationships that are exclusively between men and women are growing annoying. I’ve met my fair share of travelers that are spreading that religion.”

Fionn nose crinkled. “How unpleasant. Such people are the result of the worst of humanity.”

“Now, now,” Jederik sighed. “Though we may not like them, all humans cannot be judged by the extremes of the few. I’ve seen bad humans who do bad things in the names of their gods or single god that they believe in. But no two humans are the same, and their morality can hardly be judged by the first impression.”

“How very human of you,” Fionn said, though the corners of his mouth perked up in a sly, fey smile. He approved of Jederik, it seemed.

“Here we are,” Kuria announced. “This is the pool room, Master. It is built near the base of the castle, connected to a lake through an underground tunnel system so that Aysel can come and go as she pleases. The entrance can be cut off only by me or Lord Fionn to prevent Aysel from fleeing the castle through the passage but still allow it as an emergency escape route.”

“How smart,” Aslaug admitted.

“My mother was a water nymph,” Fionn informed Pip and Jederik. “The design was loosely based off of the system used back in the faerie court for her to visit me within the palace.”

Pip nodded. “That explains why you could pronounce my name. Who was your mom? I might know her.”

They headed inside, pushing open some grand doors. Aslaug instantly smelled the humid air and was reminded of petrichor and morning dew at the edge of a lakeside. During her travels, she’d learned to fish just out of boredom and because one of the gods had put down the terms that if she fished with them, they would listen to her plans for the AEGIS Covenant. She had spent nearly a fortnight, waking up early to go out on a lake to fish with the old god and discussing the Covenant as well as more mundane subjects like what kind of fish lived where and the unique nuances to fishing. It had been boring, but at least it had been pretty stress-free. Aslaug had gotten what she needed out of the god without much more resistance than being forced to relax.

While Jederik and Pip spoke with Fionn, Aslaug followed Finnegan over to the large semi-circular water pool at the edge of the room, Kuria ghosting behind them. Finnegan knelt at the water’s edge and held his hand over the water’s surface, laying his palm on the liquid as though setting his hand upon a glass table.

“Aysel? We’re back. And there’s some people here for you to meet. Yes, it’s safe for you to show yourself.”

After a few moments, Aslaug could feel a disturbance in the water that reminded her of hydro-manipulators like mermaids who could torpedo through the water at high speeds. The person slowed to allow their momentum to stop right in front of Finnegan before popping their head above the surface with nary a splash.

“Papa!”

True to her description, Aysel’s aquatic form was beautiful. Her skin seemed to shimmer similar to Pip’s, and her white hair didn’t seem to be wet despite having been completely submerged a moment ago. Her blue highlights in her hair seemed to reflect the water around her, rippling along with the liquid surrounding the rest of her body. She was still a young girl who had barely reached double digits, but she was clearly built strong as an aquatic - as swimming was far more strenuous than moving through air. Her fins seemed so natural on her, probably because Aslaug had gotten used to seeing gods with any number of disfigurations that made them distinctly inhuman. What Aslaug hadn’t heard about from the letters about Aysel were her vibrant violet eyes. They almost seemed to glow and shimmer when put into contrast with the rest of her turquoise skin and pale white hair. Aslaug couldn’t stop staring at them.

“Hello, my little Anatidae,” Fionn greeted, sitting down at the edge of the pool. “Have you been getting into mischief?”

Aysel giggled. “No, Father. I’ve been good. I promise!”

“Anatidae?” Jederik asked.

Pip giggled similarly to Aysel, with a hint of a gurgle masked beneath the light bubbly laughter - the trill of an aquatic supernatural. “He basically just called her ‘Ducky,’” they explained.

“Aysel, we have some guests to introduce you to,” Finnegan said.

“I’d hope that I’m considered a little more than a guest,” Aslaug interjected.

“Yeah, well, what about Pip and Jederik?” Finnegan cleared his throat. “Shelly, this is Aslaug. She’s…she’s kinda like your aunt.”

Aysel tilted her head in confusion like a bird. “Kinda?”

“Uh…well, it’s a long story.”

Jederik held up his fingers, counting the points as he spoke. “She and Finnegan are married, but they married so that they would not have to marry anyone else since they were expected to marry by their peers. They love each other, but not in the same way that Finnegan loves Fionn for example. Aslaug is your family and she loves your parents, Aysel, but she does not love them romantically.”

“Pretty much.” Aslaug laid down on her stomach in front of the pool, crossing her arms in front of her and resting her chin on them. “I’m very happy to meet you, Aysel. I’m sorry that I’ve been away for most of your life, but I promise to be a more prominent figure. Though I _do_ travel a lot, I hope to still be a part of your family.”

“You travel like Aunt Vaan?” Aysel repeated eagerly. “Can you tell me stories about your travels like she does? She brings me trinkets from her travels. We go to our other kingdom, but we rarely travel on foot since it’s dangerous.”

“Oh. Where does Vaan go?”

“Just to some other kingdoms for diplo…diplomacy reasons.”

“Diplomatic,” Fionn corrected.

“Well if _that’s_ the case, then I’d wager I have _far_ more interesting stories than _her_ ,” Aslaug began, thinking up the first story to tell.

“Aslaug…” Finnegan warned.

Aslaug tapped her own nose and winked at Aysel. “Don’t tell pops,” she whispered. “Pip! Come meet Aysel!”

Pip scurried over with Jederik in tow, diving into the water without much hesitation. Their luminescent skin flashed with color in their excitement. “Cousin!”

“Cousin?” Aysel repeated. She seemed mesmerized by Pip. “You’re like me!”

Pip and Aysel began talking excitedly as Pip explained all they could about their species and guessing what kind of things Aysel could do and what kind of species she descended from. Jederik watched Pip with a combination of fascination and trepidation, while Finnegan watched them like a protective parent watching his kid have a playdate.

By the time the daylight was fading, Aysel and Pip asked to go swimming the next day together and allow Pip to show Aysel the sea.

“She’s not too young!” Pip protested. “Normal oceanic supernaturals are learning to fend for themselves within months of their births! If anything, she’s not prepared because _you_ haven’t raised her right. By this age, Aysel should be able to summon torrential storms. She’s born from a really strong family of creatures. You might be descended from Typhon!”

“Jederik, how good are you at swimming?” Aslaug asked.

Pip giggled. “He’s been learning.”

“I could look after them, work on my own water abilities. I know Fionn doesn’t like the water, but Kuria won’t mind. I don’t even think Kuria needs to breathe if he doesn’t have reason to, especially in this world as compared to his own which had a magic-heavy atmosphere. Finnegan, what about you? Can your Io armor sustain you underwater and allow you mobility without feeling too claustrophobic?”

“Yeah, I’ve tested it out with Aysel before.”

“Great. Then Pip and Jederik can stay a little longer and we can have Aysel learn about her origins. I see no harm in it.”

“Yay!” Aysel and Pip cheered in sync.

“I’m sorry if we’re imposing,” Jederik said.

“It’s not really a problem for me,” Finnegan said. “Vaan’s the only one who really has the authority to kick you out. Stay as long as you’d like. Though it’s been a while, the staff will learn what it means to feed Aslaug. What’s one more dragon to add to the mix?”

“I can hunt my own food if it’s too much trouble.”

“Aslaug,” Fionn whispered while Finnegan and Jederik continued. Pip and Aysel were no longer listening, just celebrating spending more time together. Fionn waved Aslaug away, beckoning her out of the room.

“What’s up?” Aslaug asked.

“Aysel, do you feel it from her?”

“Feel what?”

“Your connection. Aysel is a part of your soul, Aslaug. She is a part of _our_ soul, but she is connected to you in the same way that I am connected to Finnegan.”

“She is a fragment of our soul?”

Aslaug peeked through the door, cracked open just slightly, to see the young Aysel and Pip swimming around. Aysel pulled Kuria into the pool, but the djinn didn’t seem to mind getting their clothes wet. Kuria bobbed in the water like he was nothing but a buoy for their amusement, smiling to Aysel as if this were routine. He looked utterly adorable, soaking wet with his white bangs draping across his gentle pink eyes. He didn’t seem bothered by his lack of vision and didn’t bother swiping them out of the way. Though Kuria was an empty vessel, it seemed to make him good at amusing Aysel and perhaps children in general.

“You’re all precious to me, you know that?” Aslaug said. “You’re my boys. I love seeing you together, loving each other. Even though I’m not in love with you, I wouldn’t ever _want_ to be. I love you all. I…hadn’t realized how much I’d missed you, and how full I felt when I am with you. You’re saying that Aysel is a part of our soul as well?”

Fionn nodded. “I can see her aura, Aslaug. I always have been able to, or at least Renna saw it. Even Lorcan saw it, back when Aysel was a mere infant. I am not as sensitive as them, but I felt the connection. When Aysel entered our lives, our bond grew stronger, but it became more intense. I don’t believe any of us truly knew how to cope with what was happening - Finnegan didn’t even know something was happening, and Kráka sensed it but was unsure what to do. I was much the same. But you, Aslaug, it seemed to make you volatile. You were afraid, I would speculate. Or at the very least, Fáfnir was afraid. You were content with how our bond was; you watched from the sidelines as our romance bloomed and our friendship with you solidified. The bond between the four of us was true, and we were content. But when Renna found Aysel, something changed. It was not inherently good or bad, but I believe that Aysel’s very birth changed our bond - or something resembling a close equivalent.”

“So she came into this world, making it so that our bond - which had formerly been as complete as it could get - was now incomplete once more.”

“Since so many of us were already together, our bond complete, we would not notice the difference, the shift, until Aysel grew older and came of age. If we had never found her, Aysel would’ve gone unnoticed until her time to seek out her other soul fragments came.”

“We’d have never noticed her until she hit puberty,” Aslaug summarized. “But Renna found her prematurely. By interacting with her, for a brief moment we had reunited our whole soul, changing our dynamic, but because Aysel wasn’t ready, we were uneasy, unstable. Fáfnir and I didn’t know how to react, same as the rest of you, but our reaction to not knowing is to leave and seek out new things. My confusion might’ve been the very reason I created the AEGIS Covenant. I wanted to make a better world for her sake, for _our_ sake. And Fáfnir just seemed too dazed to really fight back, since I know that he could.”

“Aysel is a part of our family, and without you our bond was incomplete. She is growing up, but she is not of age yet. But I do not believe we could tolerate your loss again, Aslaug. I ask of you, for their sake, please do not leave us again, and do not harbor ill will towards Aysel. She is our family, she is our soul-mate. You fear her because you fear what she might change.”

“Maybe. But…I don’t fear her now, Fionn. Don’t worry. I’m just interested in becoming a part of your lives again, catching up on what I missed. I promised Finnegan that I would stay, but I did not promise only him. I promised the rest of you as well. I don’t think I could tolerate leaving either.”

Fionn nodded. “As it should be, when our soul has been reunited completely.”

“Don’t worry, Fionn. I’m not going to ruin anything for you and your lovers. I’m here to stay. I’m with my family again.”


	27. No Response

It had been a fortnight and Vaan had not returned.

Jederik and Pip had decided to stay and wait for Vaan’s return so they could meet her, and Aysel wasn’t complaining at the prospect of having more time to learn from Pip. Jederik had managed to curb his jealousy when he learned that Aysel was a soul-mate of Aslaug and her family and that Aysel and Pip’s relationship was completely innocent. Aslaug didn’t go into the fact that Pip was far too old for Aysel even though in a few hundred years their age gap would hardly matter. It was a supernatural thing to not act your age and not really care about age gaps under a century in difference, but Aslaug was also part human, so she couldn’t help her prejudice at times.

“Not even a letter from her?” Aysel asked.

She and Pip had returned from another lesson as Pip taught her about the sea. Finnegan had been hesitant to allow her out into any place where he couldn’t look after her, but Jederik assured him that Pip would be more than enough to protect Aysel if anything bad happened. Though Pip looked innocent, their age was nothing to underestimate. Pip’s hair could lash out and attack with lightning quick reflexes, paralyzing, poisoning, or even killing a hostile in seconds. They were capable of shifting their color palate at will and using their tentacle-like hair to flare out to scare away predators, and if that wasn’t enough, Pip was capable of controlling water.

They were strongest underwater, and Jederik assured all of them that Pip was a force to be reckoned with when someone pissed them off underwater. Jederik had told a story of how a water dragon had confronted Jederik about being in her territory and Pip had snapped. It was the only time Pip had gotten that angry, but Jederik was not eager to see that side of Pip again, and Pip’s enemies wouldn’t want to see that side of them either.

“Unfortunately not, my little Anatidae,” Fionn said, ruffling his hand through her snowy white hair.

“I’ll try and get into contact with her,” Finnegan assured her. “If she doesn’t respond, we’ll send Kuria to come bring her home. You know he never fails, right?”

Aysel nodded. “Right Papa! Mister Kuria never fails.”

Despite Finnegan’s efforts, he told Aslaug that he still had nothing from Vaan and he’d already sent a lot of letters and she hadn’t responded - which wasn’t like her.

“Vaan _loves_ sending letters, especially to and from Aysel. Vaan loves to pretend like they’re sending secret messages for some covert operations with Aysel as her secret agent. Aysel and Vaan come up with codes, Vaan takes all the diplomatic things she has to deal with and turns them into stories for them to play out, and Vaan always likes to test Aysel on the herbs and alchemic mixtures that she’s taught Aysel. They’re best friends.”

“You said that she was visiting the kingdom of Jörmunrek?”

“Are you going after her?”

“I don’t see what other choice we have. Vaan could be in danger, and being _unable_ to contact us might be the only way she _can_ get into contact with us - sending a distress call by not responding for so long.”

“Why wouldn’t she use the Kavern?”

“The only reason I can think of is that she’s disabled from it or she _can’t_ use it without detection, and by cutting off all contact, she’s sending the message that she needs us to come to her. Or she doesn’t _want_ us to come to her because she thinks it’s too dangerous. We are going to ignore her feelings if that’s the case.”

Finnegan sighed. “Of course we are.”

“Rather, _I’m_ going to opt to ignore her feelings, because that’s just how I am. You all hang tight. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Aslaug…”

“I know, I know, I promised not to leave. But I’m not going out on a journey that could take years. I just need to ask around about Jörmunrek and his kingdom and I can go and ask for Vaan. Once I’m within range, I can do some investigating and find out where she is. No problem. If we have to make a quick escape, we use the Kavern. If we can’t use the Kavern, I’ll get us out if things are dangerous. Do you doubt me?”

“I don’t doubt you, Aslaug. I just…I don’t wanna be separated like that again. Not now that we’re all together.”

“I’ll be back, Finn, I promise. Nothing’s gonna keep me from returning.”

“Fine, but you’re explaining to Aysel why you’re leaving.”

“Easy.”

It wasn’t that easy. Curse Aysel for being such an inquisitive girl. She asked a lot of questions, and though Fionn and Kuria were used to it, Finnegan and Aslaug struggled to keep up with her at times. Fionn was just blunt to the point of not caring what he said and skirting around topics was easy if he needed to. Kuria just answered everything honestly unless he was told specifically not to, and if he was ordered to avoid a topic, he did so with ease. If Aysel pressed the two of them, neither would even come close to breaking, regardless of how much they loved her. Finnegan was more susceptible, which all of them knew and Finnegan tried to resist. Aslaug was simply not used to Aysel yet, but she would learn.

“I’m just going to see Vaan.”

“Can’t we come? We go visit kingdoms with Aunt Vaan all the time.”

“I just want to escort her back since she’s been gone for so long. If she’s stuck on the road because her transportation broke down, I’d want to make sure she travels safely home. Since she hasn’t sent messages, that might mean she just ran out of paper or has no one to send the message that could possibly go faster than she did. If I can get her home safely, I should go alone so that we’re faster.”

“Is she in big trouble?”

“Why would you ask that?”

“Because Father says that you go and do something on your own when you feel you can’t trust anyone else with the task. Since you’re so strong, Miss Aslaug, that usually means that there’s danger involved and you think you can do a better job alone than you can with liabilities like us that you’d need to protect.”

Aslaug sighed and booped Aysel’s nose. “A real strategist, aren’t you, little Duck?”

“I’m not a fool, Miss Aslaug.” Aysel seemed miffed. “You all think that I don’t understand that you have something to hide. I know the world is big and dangerous and you’ve all got lives out there. You’ve gone through things, you want to protect me, and you don’t know how to introduce me to such things. I know that I’m young, but…I’m not like other human children. Jederik and Pip told me that supernaturals grow far faster than humans, so you shouldn’t treat me like I’m too young to understand.”

Aslaug sighed. “You should tell Finnegan that. He’s really the only one who doesn’t understand what it means to be a supernatural. When I was your age, I was rebellious. I walked around the more dangerous parts of town, I was brash and brazen and could fend off anyone who got in my way. My uncle just left me to my own tasks, and with my dragon, Fáfnir, in my head, I had to work hard to remind myself who I was and who I wanted to be. I had to work extremely hard to be a good person, and I’m not always a good person despite how hard I’ve tried. Yes, there are things that we want to keep from you for your own good, but don’t think for a second that we’re underestimating you. We just want you to grow up kind, because it’s so hard to be kind in this world once you see how mean that it is.

Aysel nodded. “I know Papa worries about me. I know the world isn’t nice at times. Papa, Father, Kuria and Dad/Mom - Kráka, I mean. All of them have tried to protect me. But they know that I’m not going to be in the dark forever.”

“Are you going to confront them about it?”

Aysel wrung her hands nervously. She couldn’t lace her fingers together because of the webbing, but she still ran her hands over each other and fiddled with her fins. “I’m not really sure how. They’re my _parents_. How am I…how do you…?” She waved her hands. “How do you start a conversation like that? And how are they supposed to respond? Is our dynamic supposed to change? _How_ will it change?”

Aslaug shrugged. “I’m sure nothing much will change.”

“How can you know that? My parents are really protective of me. Papa once nearly had a heart attack the first time I accidentally teleported across the castle.”

Aslaug chuckled. “I remember that story. And it sounds _just_ like your Papa. But one way or another, all of us are going to have to accept the fact that you’re an independent and you need to go out and experience things if you want to be safe.”

Aysel stared out the window of the pool room. The windows into the pool room were enchanted to make sure no one saw Aysel while she was in her true form, but Aysel liked the natural light and the view to the outside world. Fionn was considering installing a skylight.

“Can I come with you?” Aysel blurted. “To find Aunt Vaan? _Please_. I promise I won’t be a burden. I-I’ll do everything you tell me, I won’t ask questions, I’ll stay by your side and won’t wander off, a-and…and I can be useful! I can be useful…”

“Aysel-”

“Pip’s been teaching me my water powers! I’m strong, I swear! I can be your secret agent. No one expects a kid like me to be competent.”

“Aysel.”

“But I won’t actively seek out danger and all. Papa alone would kill us both if I got hurt. Father would give us eternal torture without leaving a scratch on us, and Kuria probably would tell us to be careful next time and move on. Dad would be furious though. He’d probably wrap me up in a blanket burrito and never let me go out again. Or maybe hole me up in a blanket fort and try to entertain me so much that I never want to leave again. Mom always likes to use their power to make the world look beautiful. Underwater, they can make it seem like we’re swimming through the stars themselves.”

“Our family has a lot of psychological techniques for torturing someone,” Aslaug muttered. “But that’s not the point. Listen to me, Aysel. I _want_ to take you with me. But you gotta know, we _are_ risking the wrath of your parents, and I’m not sure how the journey will go. I know that you’re very willing to go out there and you understand the risks, but it’s one thing to _know_ about the risks when your family is trying their hardest to keep you in the dark. It’s an entirely new thing to see the world for yourself. Humans are cruel and horrific, and they don’t make sense at times. But some of them are beautiful and lovely and full of so much potential. You just can’t be surprised when you find things that don’t make sense or are too much for you to handle. You have to tell me when you’re confused or when things get overwhelming.”

Aysel nodded eagerly. “I promise.”

“Then let’s go.”

“Right now?”

“I told Finnegan that I’m leaving. We’ll have about five hours before he realizes that you’re not there for dinner. If we get far enough, they won’t be able to catch up. Besides, I get to introduce you to my horse.”


	28. Escape and Grani

“You’re really good underwater,” Aysel commented.

Aslaug shrugged. “I’ve had a lot of time to practice. Now follow me. Luckily none of your parents have energy signatures that I can’t override, so we can get out with ease.”

Aslaug moved through the water swiftly, controlling the currents and allowing her to torpedo through the water. Torpedoing was a basic slang that meant one could move through the water swiftly without having to propel themselves forward with a physical motion. It was an advanced magical skill, as water was very difficult to move through using power alone, but water-based supernaturals could learn it with enough practice. All Aslaug had to do was aim herself in the direction she wanted to go and she could push herself forward in a similar manner to using her radius. The more streamlined her body was at the time, the easier it was to move, which was why it was beneficial to put her arms out forward in a pointed motion or keep them at her sides to reduce the drag.

Talking underwater was another skill reserved only for water-based supernaturals. Sound had more trouble traveling underwater, meaning that a supernatural who could speak underwater would not be capable of speaking above water without deafening someone. Those who could speak both above and below water often had special sonar powers and a screeching voice that could be used to their advantage at times.

Aslaug was an adaptor, and so through her years of training she’d learned the elements along with energy manipulation and advanced mimicking skills. She learned ideas from every creature she came across, including the gods, and mastering new magic skills was entertaining. Fáfnir, of course, wanted to be the most powerful creature in existence and make sure no one could trick or overpower them both. Aslaug didn’t protest to knowing more skills.

By the time Aslaug and Aysel emerged from underwater in a lake not far from the palace, Aslaug had begun growing accustomed to the water. It was quiet, peaceful.

“So where are we going?” Aysel asked.

“Put your glamour on,” Aslaug ordered. Aysel did so. Aslaug put her fingers in her mouth, wet fingers helping her whistle as loudly as she could.

A steed came dashing across the field towards them, a beautiful black steed with silver locks flowing in the wind. Silver hooves, platinum locks, and he practically seemed to sparkle in the sunset. If you looked at the right angle, his black coat seemed to shimmer with a gray sheen. Up close, the power radiating off of him was clear. He was a ferocious horse, Aysel deduced with her amazing observation skills.

“This is Grani,” Aslaug introduced, climbing out of the water to meet the horse. She waved her hand and pulled the water free from her clothes and hair, tossing it back into the lake. “Descendant of Sleipnir. He was my father’s horse. Sought him out while I was making the AEGIS Covenant. Did a lot of traveling; the gods recommended him to me when I couldn’t always use the Kavern. No Kavern this time since we’re trying to escape from the other members who can _use_ the Kavern. Nevermind that, he’ll get us where we need to go. Hop on.”

Aysel emerged from the water, completely dry, and accepted Aslaug’s help mounting the steed. Aslaug rode behind Aysel so that she could keep the child in her arms so she didn’t fall off.

“We’re heading east, Grani. Finding the kingdom of Jörmunrek and Svanhild. Hyah!”

The horse didn’t have any reins, but Aslaug gave a mental command and shifted her weight just slightly and the horse took off. Aslaug recommended holding onto the horse’s mane, which Aysel did, filled with thrill and fear. It was exhilarating, terrifying. She had never ridden a horse before, let alone as fast as a supernatural steed could take her as opposed to a regular horse.

“This is amazing!” Aysel called over the wind. “How far are we going?!”

“Just a couple thousand kilometers! Should be there by tomorrow if we rest!”

They took off into the sunset, heading for a future that they couldn’t have prevented.

Finnegan collapsed, breathing hard against the sheets of his bed. Fionn was with him tonight, and quiet honestly he was his most frequent partner these days.

Not that he was complaining.

“Are you okay?” Fionn asked, too dazed to be elegant with his words. Finnegan secretly liked seeing him that way.

“I’d tell you if I weren’t,” Finnegan pointed out. “I promised, and I’m still true to my word.” He leaned over and kissed Fionn beside him. “I’m fine. Or as fine as I _can_ be when you start letting loose.”

A bite mark warmed the crook of his neck; a thing that happened with supernaturals and their soul-mates was that they had the natural urge to bite them, especially during intercourse. Apparently breaking the skin for blood was something that strengthened their bond, as blood was an extremely powerful and potent element in the supernatural world. It would strengthen and feed their bond, and it helped them share their power - so a human might be made immortal of their supernatural bit them often enough during sex.

Yeah, it wasn’t just vampires that needed people’s blood, it was _all_ supernaturals, but especially ones that were in love. When _vampires_ were in love, their bloodlust got overwhelming. Finnegan didn’t mean any offense, but he was glad he didn’t have a vampire mate. With Fionn, he inherited an enhanced sense of smell, it became extremely difficult (though still possible) for him to be dishonest, he started speaking with fancier dialects and even spoke in the fey language, and he had a closer connection with nature. He enjoyed heat and warmth, and according to Kuria his body temperature permanently raised above that of a regular human’s. His skin and complexion cleared and seemed to shimmer and his body hair grew far slower - though his freckles and his beard still remained and grew respectively for the most part.

“My apologies,” Fionn said, though at this point in their relationship they both knew that though he gave his apologies, he didn’t regret it or make any excuses. And Finnegan honestly didn’t mind.

“Where’s Kuria?” Finnegan asked lightly.

“I know not, love. He retreats often to solitude for reasons I cannot discern.”

Fionn snuggled closer, as if he could possibly _get_ closer, and took in Finnegan’s scent. Finnegan still didn’t know how Fionn hadn’t gotten tired of him and his scent yet. But he supposed it was a supernatural thing, never growing tired of your lover. It was just human of him to fear that Fionn would eventually grow tired of him. The same way he and Fionn were connected, they were both connected to Kráka as well. Finnegan’s connection to them must’ve been the reason that he found Fionn sweet even still, enjoying his warmth and his smokey scent and never getting tired of their intimate moments. But ever since Aslaug had returned, Kuria had been disappearing more often, and could usually be found by Aslaug’s side. And sometimes, he wasn’t by her side.

“I hope nothing’s wrong.”

Finnegan had a bad feeling stirring in his chest, and he couldn’t say why. He tended to feel emotions from Kuria and Fionn, to the point that he couldn’t discern whether he himself was worried or if they were worried. Usually information was shared between them like that, since there was no such thing as secrets between soul-mates.

Fionn turned Finnegan’s head and kissed him with one of those kisses that wasn’t deep or intense, but it still lingered and made Finnegan melt. “Let us seek him out on the morrow, voice our woes and ask of him his own.”

Finnegan nodded, pulling Fionn’s arms tighter around him. “Yeah. We’ll see him tomorrow.”


	29. Inheritance

“Thank you,” Aslaug said, taking the bread from the vendor.

“What’s that?” Aysel asked.

“Garlic bread. Made with some spices to give it a nice flare, some butter to add to the flavor, and cooked lightly to merge it all together. Some of my favorite. For a little more coin I could get some extra supernatural flare to it. Here’s the milder version for humans, but if you like it, you can try some of mine.”

Aysel took a large bite out of the bread with no regard for her own taste buds’ safety. Luckily, she seemed to love it, because she practically inhaled the rest of it. Aslaug didn’t like giving away her food, so she went and bought a couple more loaves for each of them.

“I’ve established a system of trade and agreements that are beginning to spread,” Aslaug explained. “Spices and herbs for supernaturals are just the beginning of the offers that should be spreading around the world. Hopefully, one day, everyone will have the chance to just coexist like that, humans buy what humans buy and supernaturals can get food at the same places by just ordering.”

“You’re really smart, Miss Aslaug.”

“I’m really not, kid. Just a girl who stumbled into the right thing. I wanted to make this world better because I’ve got a human soul-mate. Your pops has an Io to help him, but he’s still human. I worry about him, I worry about his kind. He’s not the only human who is a soul-mate to a supernatural.” She sighed. “The best case scenario that I found during my travels were where humans were kept like cattle. They were treated well, but harvested and had little to no rights. Because if they knew anything about freedom, they would no doubt rebel. The only way to avoid conflict was to make it so that one side was completely unaware of their subjugation and they were treated with pity by their owners. _That_ is the only way that we can coexist with humans? I didn’t want to believe it. Humans are capable of goodness. And so are supernaturals. We just need to work out an agreement.”

“You’re very nice, too, Miss Aslaug.”

Aslaug took a large bite of her bread, chewing it with her dragon teeth. “I wouldn’t take that to heart, kid. You shouldn’t think that what I’m doing is nice. If _I’m_ nice, you don’t wanna see the bad people in this world. I am selfish; I do what I do for myself and those that I care for. I do not care for people I do not know and I will put my own people above them. That’s what being me means. I prepare myself to be this person for eternity, and that’s how it’s always going to be. I will not be good, and so I will not be bad.”

Aslaug asked around about Jörmunrek’s kingdom and any word about Svanhild being courted by Randver. Aysel followed her silently, observing how Aslaug interacted with people and also how she held herself and got taken seriously.

“Looks like Vaan _did_ visit Jörmunrek’s kingdom a lot, and she went there recently. No updates on her most current whereabouts though. At least we know where the kingdom is. We’ll be there by tomorrow at the latest.”

Aysel climbed onto the back of Grani, a quick learner as she mounted. Aslaug at least had a saddle on the horse, but that was mainly so that she could carry items on the steed, including a large sword that looked far too large to be Aslaug’s. The sheath was brown of hue with a dragon emblazoned on it. Aslaug noticed Aysel admiring it and reached to pull the large sword from its sheath, revealing a large silver blade designed with a dragonite pattern. The hilt matched the sheath with brown leather and golden accents and metal bits. The blade was beautiful, shimmering metal that glimmered in the sunlight. Aysel could see the sharpness of the blade from where she sat upon Grani.

“This is Gram,” Aslaug introduced. “The sharpest blade in the lands, one of the most powerful. My father’s weapon once, I took it from his tomb after he died. None had been able to draw the blade, let alone wield its power. First time I tried summoning its strength, it blew up and left a crater bigger than the pool room back home. Took me a while to forge it back together and use some magic to return it to its former glory. Even your aunt Vaan tried to take up this weapon once, but she couldn’t wield it either, though she didn’t try too hard.”

“And you can?”

“Only because I am hardened with the curses of my parents. Even then, it took me time to learn how to use it. I learned a lot of things about my parents’ artifacts over the years. For example, the Tarnkappe.” She pulled a cloak out of her back, just a simple traveling cloak, but when Aysel looked closer, it was laced with intricate enchantments and embroidered with beautiful patterns. Aslaug out the cloak over Aysel’s shoulders, latching it with a small emerald gem as the clip. “Better known as the Cloak of Invisibility. Increases the wearer’s strength twelve times.”

“Really?” Aysel looked down at herself. “I don’t feel any different.”

“You won’t. Until you move to lift something and it’s far lighter than you thought. Then again, you might not be capable of activating the cloak because you have not proven yourself. Artifacts such as these are picky about their users. Only the worthy can use them, regardless of a person’s moral standards. I don’t really need it since my own strength has so far sufficed, but you might be best with it. Maybe you’ll be able to keep up with me; it might keep you safe. Have it.”

Aysel’s face lit up. “Really?! I can just keep it? A rare artifact from your father?”

“You’re family, Aysel. You deserve it. I trust you to use it wisely. Besides, I’ve got plenty of trinkets beyond the Tarnkappe. Just make sure not to lose it; look after it for me, and consider that repayment for being able to use it for yourself.”

Aysel pulled the Tarnkappe around her tightly. “I will. I promise. No one will get it from me.”

Aslaug nodded. “On top of that, I’ve got my mother’s ring, the Andvaranaut. It’s a cursed ring, bringing destruction to all who own it. The Andvaranaut was what united my parents, and the curse is now mine to wield, though I must not use it too often or it will be my downfall, and subsequently the downfall of all those around me. I won’t let its curse reach you or your parents. Any part of my soul. I won’t let any of you get hurt. I suppose that’s not really a benefit of mine, though. More of a…last resort. And I wield the Andvaranaut so that no one else might have to suffer from it.

“Beyond that, I have…” Aslaug patted down her sides, pulling out a small cylinder that fit in the palm of her hand like the hilt of a sword. “This is my mother’s weapon. It’s designed to accommodate to the needs of its user. I can summon any weapon I desire. I don’t need a sword because I have Gram, but I can transform this into a bow with enchanted ammo that needs no reloading, or some kind of blunt object, etc. One of my more useful weapons. I can even turn it into a utensil, a torch, things like that.”

“That’s your mother’s weapon?”

“Yes. It’s a long story. I’ll tell you one day, perhaps. There’s also the Helm of Terror, but that’s…not really something I should show you.”

Aslaug prepared to mount Grani behind Aysel, but then she felt a shift in the air as the Kavern dispensed something in front of her.

“Whoa. Is that from Papa?” Aysel guessed, recognizing the signs of the Kavern being used.

Aslaug caught a letter in her hands, turning it over in her fingers. “Doesn’t smell much like Finnegan or Fionn. Kuria, perhaps.”

“Master!”

Aslaug yelped as Kuria spoke up from beside her. “Jesus, Perseus, and Queen Zenobia’s diadem, Kuria! Don’t sneak up on me like that!”

“Yes Master,” he muttered quickly. “Master, something has happened.”

He pointed at the letter in Aslaug’s hands, trying to find the words. Kuria rarely struggled to get a message across unless he hadn’t been given orders to say something, meaning he came here without Finnegan or Fionn knowing or at least not for the reasons they would’ve approved of.

Aslaug looked to the wax seal that she didn’t recognize and broke the letter open. Dread filled her soul when she read the first words beneath the general greeting, not addressed to anyone in particular.

‘ _We regret to inform you…_ ’


	30. Terror

Aslaug rode as fast as she could on Grani.

She had ordered Kuria to run beside her, allowing the djinn to keep up with their extreme pace. Even though Kuria was fast, and so was Aslaug, Grani was faster and built for combat. Not to mention Aysel also insisted on coming as well, and her only mode of transportation would be Grani, who would only obey Aslaug and would look after Aysel while keeping her from following them if Aslaug just ordered it. But she wasn’t that cruel, and she didn’t think her heart could tolerate betraying Aysel like that. Aysel was one of her soul-mates, after all, meaning that Aslaug would have an especially hard time doing anything that displeased her, regardless of if it was for her own good.

They arrived earlier than Aslaug had ever intended, and they hadn’t taken their time to get to know the lands, but Aslaug didn’t care.

‘ _…to be executed…_ ’

“Kuria take us to Vaan! Now!”

Kuria nodded and took off, Aslaug following with Grani.

‘ _…decreed by the court of Jörmunrek as guilty of infidelity…_ ’

“Is Aunt Vaan okay?!” Aysel asked.

“I don’t know!” Aslaug admitted. “I hope…” she mumbled.

They approached a field near to the palace where a large crowd was dispersing, like the end of a large event. Kuria began to slow, and so did Grani, allowing Aslaug to dismount and keep running after Kuria.

“Vaan!” Aslaug shouted. “VAAAAAN! Kuria, where _is_ she?!”

Kuria’s eyes flashed red and he dived for Grani, knocking Aysel off the steed and holding her in a tight embrace. He was covering her eyes.

“Vaan…”

Aslaug slowly crept forward, watching the group of men that were attending to the remains of a person. Aslaug couldn’t breathe. Her whole body felt like it was on the verge of collapse, but her feet moved forward and her eyes sought out any way to identify the body.

“Vaan…”

The last time they met she had walked out on Vaan.

“Vaan…!”

Poison seeped through her aura, spreading through the ground and causing the flora around her to die.

“Who are you?” one of the men tending to the body demanded. He looked like some sort of palace attendant, but Aslaug really couldn’t care less.

“ _Where is Svanhild?_ ” she asked, her voice deepening with Fáfnir’s rage. If she had spoken any louder, she would risk shouting and raging at the top of her lungs.

“You missed the execution, man. Sorry, but the girl died a while back. We’re just here to clean up the mess.”

Aslaug’s eyes slowly rose to the man. Her eyes began to glow white, pupils disappearing, and on her forehead burned a mark. An eight-pointed snowflake-like image burned white at the center of her forehead, each point with an arch aimed inwards like three-pointed menorahs. All the points had three lines perpendicular to the main eight points, and then at the center a circle surrounded the point where the eight lines intersected.

“ _You shall face the Helm of Terror, mortal. Œgishjalmr, Ægishjálmur; face my wrath._ ”

The Helm of Awe, the Helm of Terror, an Icelandic magical stave that could inspire reverence or horror to the point of madness. It could be stored on an artifact or a person, but it was most effective when attached to a living being. Kuria covered Aysel’s eyes and blocked sound with his powers, as he had long ago promised to protect Aysel from dangers and traumatizing events.

“Master!” Kuria shouted.

The men screamed in agony, poison seeping through the ground and devouring them in an instant. Vaan’s body was preserved, Kuria protected Aysel (though he could tell that Aslaug was sparing them as well on purpose), but the rest of the fields instantly dissolved, as if the air turned radioactive. Aslaug went nuclear, screaming so loud that the atoms in the air around her seemed to be wailing with her.

“Master!” Kuria urged. “You must stop!”

“Miss Aslaug!” Aysel screamed blindly.

Kuria’s body bled to black, his white outer shell of Kuria being stripped away. He needed the full power of Kráka in order to keep Aslaug’s power at bay, even when Aslaug was not aiming at them specifically and was actually _trying_ to spare them. Unconsciously, Aslaug would not do harm to her mates. She could only harm them if she knew precisely what she was doing, willingly fighting against her instincts, and even then it would be physically painful for her.

“Aslaug!” Kráka wound a spell around Aysel to keep her protected. “Stay here. Don’t move.”

Aysel nodded without protest, knowing that she would only make things worse if she tried to interfere. She pulled the Tarnkappe tightly around herself while Kráka’s magic seemed to embrace her tightly as well.

Kráka began making their way over to Aslaug, pushing through the torrential storm forming around them emerging from Aslaug. “Aslaug! Please! I know! I loved her too! But this isn’t how you must grieve for her! What would she think if she were looking down upon you now?! Her ghost is watching you, trying to tell you a million things, but you can’t hear her! She’s going to be sad if you’re sad but you won’t even hear her sorrow! I know it’s hard, Aslaug, but let us be there for you! You’re not the only one who loved her! You are not alone in this! But if you don’t regain control of yourself, you’re going to destroy this kingdom and yourself! Are you so eager to see her again that you would leave Fionn and Finnegan and Aysel and I to mourn _your_ loss as well?!”

Kráka stumbled their way to Aslaug and finally lurched forward to embrace her. They could feel a zap in her energies, but they didn’t relent. It was hard to tell if she heard them or not.

“Aslaug,” they whispered into her ear.

She sucked in a deep breath, gasping as she reigned in her power by force. It felt like sucking in an entire tempest, a storm so great and chaotic that it can never be contained, but she was trying to do so. In a split second, she brought herself down. Harshly, terribly, as though trying to rip herself open and make sure that no one got hurt as she punished herself for what she had failed to do.

Kráka felt the air sucked out of their lungs, or perhaps it was more accurate to say it felt like they were underwater, breathing in liquid and searching desperately for air to breathe. They gripped Aslaug tightly through the numbing pain as they fought for their consciousness.

Finally, the storm calmed down around them and all that was left was an empty silence. It almost seemed as soul-sucking as the storm. It took Aslaug a long time to speak; Kráka wasn’t sure if she was awake or if she’d passed out standing up. Her eyes were glossy, as though she didn’t see anymore, as though in a trance.

“What am I supposed to tell her mother?”


	31. Grieving

Aysel cried for days. She just couldn’t seem to stop. Finnegan just embraced her tightly, but they all knew that he was crying too.

Fionn prepared a traditional fey ceremony, though not anything public, just for them. He said that it was important that the dead were respected and passed onto the afterlife properly, and depending on who and what creature he was mourning the passing of, he had certain traditions and cultural aspects that he had to respect.

Aslaug had to order Kuria to retrieve and fix up the body. The djinn did so without a hint of emotion, but he didn’t smile or seem in any way animated like he normally could be despite not having a true heart or soul for himself. By the time Kuria was done with her, there was not a hint of damage. Aslaug couldn’t tell if it was better or worse to see her lying like she was asleep. Kuria had performed some magic, but Aslaug wasn’t sure if she’d rather have her body just burned rather than fixed up for a funeral.

It was Aslaug who finally informed Gudrun, King Jonakr, and Vaan’s brothers, Hamdir, Sörli, and Erp about what happened. Though King Jonakr had likely caught wind of the news, even Vaan’s brothers, Gudrun snapped and punched Aslaug as hard as she could. Aslaug heard screams about a curse that Aslaug brought upon their family, just like her mother before her, but Aslaug didn’t really _hear_ her. The words were all just a blur.

 _Time_ was a blur for a while. Aslaug tried writing about her feelings; apparently that was supposed to help. She’d held a quill over a parchment for so long that the ink had bled through and left a hole. Words escaped her. She still thought about what she wanted to say, but never could she even find the words in her own mind. For a while, she was mute. Fionn, Finnegan, and even Kuria talked to her, and Aysel sat with her a couple times. Rather than writing, she suggested drawing, maybe making things. Aysel was making some origami that Kuria had taught her, and so Aslaug indulged her and ended up creating a lot of art projects expressing her jumbled emotions.

When they were all together, it made things easier and more difficult. They were able to share their grief, all of them holding the weight of all of their emotions at once. Phoenix had to be a mediator a lot, since Renna would just straight up burst into random fits of tears or be as silent as Aslaug, while Lorcan would just stare at nothing, or maybe the stars, and punch anyone who tried to strike up an actual conversation with her. Fionn tried his best to be the support of the group, but it was too much weight for even him to bear. He was strong, and emotionally he and Kráka were the most controlled, but he was just one person - someone who had been through his own share of misery and was delicate on the inside. Kráka, meanwhile, was more emotional than Kuria, and though they were a djinn and therefore much more powerful and in control of themself, Kuria was far more stable. A djinn as powerful as Kráka could become dangerous if they lost control of their emotions.

Luckily, Fáfnir and Aslaug could communicate with Kuria through a mental link, so Aslaug didn’t necessarily need to speak to Kuria to give him orders, and Kuria didn’t always have to respond aloud with ‘Yes Master,’ every time he understood her orders. He could just give her a nod of acknowledgment or even a bow.

Finnegan, Fionn, and Kuria didn’t show each other much more than a hug and the occasional kiss. Aslaug knew she shouldn’t complain, but it was weird to know that they were so sad that they could hardly love each other anymore. She felt a small wave of relief from them all each time they managed a kiss, but there was also a tight squeeze in her chest of sadness.

Aslaug and Fáfnir continued their training to become more powerful, which seemed to distract them since Fáfnir loved being better than other people. Aysel wanted to learn from Aslaug, but Aslaug and Fáfnir alike weren’t very good teachers. Pip volunteered to teach Aysel, and so to stay together, Aslaug and her party moved in with Jederik and Pip, who had more than enough room to accommodate them. Though Jederik and Pip didn’t have the same connection to Aslaug and her soul-mates, they were still like family, and Aslaug greatly appreciated them.

On top of training, Aslaug was busy at work with the AEGIS Covenant, settling disputes and enforcing the new laws. There were always hard cases, but she dealt with them as kindly as she could. She tried to be nice, but she hardly flinched when someone was rude or aggressive. If some would not follow the rules out of kindness, they would be subjugated through fear. Aslaug didn’t like ruling through fear, it put targets on her back that she really didn’t need, but for the most part she had people’s respect, if nothing else.

By the time the AEGIS Covenant finally began to settle down, Aslaug realized that she and her family had started moving past what happened to Vaan. At the very least, her life didn’t feel mired in an ennui of depression and sadness. She started being able to remember what was happening again, rather than living out endless, blank days. That was something, at least.

Gudrun and her three children had attempted to get revenge for Vaan’s death, but that had ended in tragedy. Erp had been considerate about the situation and hesitant about going through with killing King Jörmunrek, but his brothers - in their aggression - had mistaken his hesitancy as arrogance. The ambivalent answer was born out of his intelligence and caution, but it had ended up causing Hamdir and Sörli to kill Erp and go through with the plan to kill Jörmunrek without him. They cut off his hands and feet, but Erp would’ve cut off his head and not tortured Jörmunrek but rather just ended him. In the end, by not getting it over with quickly, Jörmunrek was able to call for his housecarls. Thanks to some divine intervention, the brothers who could not be harmed by weapons ended up stoned to death.

Aslaug had visited Jonakr’s kingdom the moment she had found out, dropping everything and canceling her meeting with the king Anund. Aslaug knew how much Gudrun had gone through, just from Vaan’s stories alone. It had been a long time since Vaan had first introduced her mother and King Jonakr, yet Aslaug knew well enough that Gudrun’s heart probably couldn’t take any more tragedy.

Comforting Gudrun was not easy for Aslaug. She was still the source of Gudrun’s animosity, especially with her history and her mother’s history with Gudrun. But Aslaug felt pity for the woman. She had gone through far more than Aslaug could possibly think a woman - a human in general - should go through.

In the end, Aslaug was persistent enough that Gudrun finally gave in and allowed Aslaug to help her. King Jonakr was one of the most supportive figures in Gudrun’s life, having helped her past her issues before, but Aslaug tried her best to at least show her support. Jonakr and Gudrun were some of the first human supporters of the AEGIS Covenant.

The animals, the trees themselves, it felt like everything was in mourning. The animals around Vaan’s palaces always spoke of her and the legend she left. Aslaug ended up feeding the animals that Vaan had domesticated, the ones who relied on her for food and shelter. ‘ ** _Honestly, Vaan_** ,’ Aslaug thought to herself, half annoyed, half amused.

It was a couple weeks after her death that Vaan’s funeral was actually held. Thanks to Kuria’s magical preservation, Vaan’s body was preserved perfectly. Phoenix oversaw the ceremony, mostly because he was the closest god to Vaan on a personal level and because he was a god of rebirth and fire, aka funeral pyres were his thing.

Kráka showed up in ceremonial djinn garb involving garb from a more southern land; Aslaug recognized the garb from some of the gods, particularly the Hindu gods. Finnegan showed up in some fancy human clothes from his noble upbringing, while Jederik and Pip assisted Aslaug and Aysel respectively in finding culturally appropriate dress for them. Aslaug had never worn such heavy clothing, not that it was a problem, and actually the weight was oddly satisfying. Jederik said that the eastern garbs were from his dragon tribe, and that it was understandable that she liked the heavy garb meant for dragons. It was like she had training weights, plus she had an Oriental look since apparently Jederik came from a really tall mountain tribe based on the Oriental fashion. She never thought she’d find a dress-like outfit she appreciated - he said that it was kimono-based, and Aslaug thought that was supposed to be a type of dragon, so it made sense (“That’s a _Komodo_ dragon, Aslaug, not a _Kimono_ dragon”). Phoenix looked probably the most fancy (the bar was set very high, so this was a serious accomplishment) with some royal garb even by godly standards. Aslaug felt bad that everyone was decked out in supernatural amazing garb while Finnegan looked so insecure at his mere human nobleman outfit. Kráka assured him that he looked dashing, but meanwhile Finnegan was just staring at Kráka like a gaping fish, which was almost enough to lighten the mood of the day.

Phoenix lit some Heavenly Fire or something along those lines of god-based flames while Gudrun was commissioned to light the funeral pyre of her daughter and sons. Her husband had to hold her as she broke down, and Aslaug took the torch - quite literally - and lit the pyre for her. Kráka released their magical preservation, and everyone went through the motions of mourning.

The ashes were gathered and brought to the shores of Gjúki’s kingdom where Aslaug would scatter her ashes into the wind with a little wind magic to help scatter them amongst the sea. Apparently it was symbolic or something, a way to let go of the person and allow _them_ to move on as well. Aslaug honestly didn’t see the point of most of the ceremonial stuff, but what she _did_ understand was that letting go of Vaan’s ashes meant letting go of everything about her.

Aysel pushed the waves out to sea and made sure that the ashes were properly scattered in the sea. Considering how much Aysel had loved Vaan, how Vaan was one of the main reasons they’d kept Aysel and raised her, and how Vaan was one of the only mother figures Aysel had, Aslaug honestly had to give her props for not going on a torrential - oh wait.

Aslaug was sitting in the dining hall when Jederik practically busted down the door and screamed that Pip needed help. Pip had been out with Aysel trying to help her relax in her home habitat, but then a storm began and Jederik felt a distress signal from Pip through their mate link. Jederik had transformed and tried to get to Pip, but even his dragon form wasn’t strong enough to break past the storm and he’s in a state of absolute distress, being unable to reach his mate when they were in danger. Aslaug and her own mates understood how traumatizing that could be thanks to the strength of a bond, and they knew that Jederik was growing increasingly manic at the strain of his bond; there could grow a time when Jederik threw himself into the storm without care for his wellbeing, which would be bad for all parties involved.

By the time Aslaug and the others managed to calm the storm (involving Fionn summoning some godly powers along with Kráka having to be brought out in order to fulfill Aslaug’s orders to calm the storm while both Aslaug and Jederik were left to ponder how little they could really do as dragons that hadn’t really mastered water-based magic. Even if they _could_ master water magic, it would take many centuries to be able to compete with the storm) Aysel was brought back to shore with Jederik barely being held back.

Pip had been knocked unconscious, but luckily they were unharmed since they could breathe water and any water-based storm wouldn’t do much damage since Pip was old enough to be powerful enough to at least handle themself. Even so, Jederik was a dragon who had just felt a very big threat to his mate. It took Aslaug, Kuria, and Fionn to restrain both Aysel and Jederik who were both a mess and nearly starting a brawl that could’ve turned into something resembling a war. Only Finnegan was able to stop them and calm them down with a lot of screaming and mostly breaking down.

After that, their relationship was quiet. Aslaug ended up stating that they were moving into the Kavern until they could deal with this situation, since the Kavern would help contain anything bad that happened. Aslaug began getting a headache at constantly having to babysit her traumatized family, mostly because she herself needed to deal with her feelings on the situation, but she had no time to do so, and that only made her worse. Kuria was the easiest to deal with, and even when Kráka came out, they mostly meditated and focused on their auras. Kráka was the first one to truly move on from Vaan’s passing, maybe something about having Kuria’s emotionless state combined with their divine nature. Finnegan and Fionn, meanwhile, were very erratic in their coping methods.

On top of that, Aslaug was also dealing with the constant stream of concerns about the AEGIS Covenant that naturally arose and she didn’t trust anyone else to handle the situation. Everyone knew about Aslaug very quickly as the AEGIS Covenant spread, and though the majority of the supernatural world began to find the benefits of the Covenant, she did have to deal with unique situations that she hadn’t thought about. She didn’t like resorting to a fear tactic, but when she was a bottled up bundle of rage, her intimidation often leaked out unknowingly. She couldn’t let people know that she was close to snapping, since losing her composure would be seen as a sign of weakness, and at the same time she needed to make sure that some cases were dealt with quickly and fear was the only way to get through to some of the worst supernaturals.

She made sure that she was taken seriously about the Covenant and its goals, methodically keeping track of all the world that the gods and the members of the Covenant could keep track of. If there was _any_ sign of trouble reported, Aslaug went to investigate, and since she had literally omniscient gods on her side, there was rarely something that she couldn’t find. There were even disputes among the gods who didn’t like being used or having the status quo disrupted in the distinctive lifestyles, but thanks to her overall popularity among the gods along with having hear a lot of stories about both the past and the future in the gods’ cycles, she came to find that they were extremely predictable - as most deities are - and therefore, she knew most, if not all of the tricks that the gods could do or offer, or at the very least she was prepared for things. Even _Aslaug_ couldn’t predict everything, and she knew some of the gods could get weird and creative if they were desperate, but often some of the _other_ gods ended up whacking them on the head for it and Aslaug didn’t even have to get involved.

By the time she deemed her family calm enough to return to the mortal world, they returned to her home with her uncle Heimr, a relatively calm place to live for the most part.

Finnegan was a big help in reconciling them all after the former disputes and bringing them back together as a family to collectively mourn and move past the passing of Vaan. Though he was very human out of the rest of them, he was far more stable than Fionn, who went through constant changes through his personalities, each with separate reactions to the situation depending on how well they knew Vaan.

Finnegan, and quite honestly the rest of her soul-mates, could tell that Aslaug was a pent up ball of contained rage and frustration, but admittedly, poking the dragon that was Aslaug was not beneficial for all of them. Getting her into a stress-less situation to slowly deflate her knot of emotions rather than popping _that_ water balloon was a more recommended approach.

It took time, but they managed to convince Aslaug to go on a vacation to Jederik’s home tribe to learn more about her dragon heritage. It wasn’t as though Aslaug hadn’t been learning about dragons through her work with them in the Covenant, but Jederik wanted to teach her a first-hand experience of the culture. Fáfnir was considered a rogue, clan-less dragon, but Jederik had some influence in his community, so showing her around wasn’t out of his depth, and so long as she obeyed the basic rules of hospitality and such, she would be allowed to live there. And if anyone gave her trouble, not only was she an influential founder of the Covenant, but she was under Jederik’s protection, so her word would have a great deal of credibility. If not, Aslaug had more than enough judgmental deities at her beck and call ready to reveal fact from fiction.

“We’ll also be ready with some of the best trainers in dragon capabilities,” Jederik added. “Dragons are adaptable creatures. Maybe you’ll learn a thing or two more about your genes.”

“That’s an opinion,” Aslaug chuckled. “But I see no harm in it.”

“Are we going with you, Miss Aslaug?” Aysel asked.

“I don’t think it’d be allowed,” Jederik admitted. “Dragon tribes are picky about who they let in. Aslaug has a reputation that I can get around, but her family might be another issue. After all, Fáfnir himself is a transformed dragon - he started human but got transformed. It all depends on the tribe, but mine surely wouldn’t like anyone that definitely _isn’t_ a dragon to just be welcomed in. I’d start losing respect if I abused my position for so many people joining us. Kuria might be able to come since he’s Aslaug’s absolute servant, but beyond that, you should stay here.”

“I’ll look after her,” Pip promised. “I know that _I_ could come, since I’m your mate, but I won’t abuse my power either.”

Jederik smirked and ruffled Pip’s tentacle hair. “You just don’t like my family, little squid.”

“Well they don’t like me either! They’re scary. You’re not scary, though. I’m half convinced you’re not related at all.”

“Oh, _some_ of them like you.”

“And some of them don’t! I much prefer our home _away_ from your tribe constantly breathing down my neck, thank you.”

Aslaug smirked. “Hm. Can’t tell if I’m going to like it there or if I’ll wreck the place on principle. We’ll see.”

“Wouldn’t that break some of your own laws under the Covenant?” Finnegan pointed out.

She shrugged. “A dragon can fantasize.”

“Kuria might join you in your venture,” Fionn volunteered. “We will take our own journey, perhaps to my brother’s kingdom. We are long due for a visit.”

“Yes, perhaps that _would_ be nice,” Finnegan admitted.

“Did Father’s brother know of Aunt Vaan?” Aysel asked.

“He knew, young one,” Fionn assured her. “Unfortunately, he was not able to leave his lands and his kingdom, but he sent his condolences and sent invite for our party to visit. Perhaps he holds a treat for you, young one.”

“I’m not _that_ young anymore, Father,” Aysel protested.

“He is still some eighty years older than you,” Aslaug pointed out. “I’m around fifty, and Kuria…well, we don’t really know, now do we? Plus the fact that he’s got an ancient god in him, and who _knows_ how old Phoenix is?” She leaned in and whispered lightly. “I don’t even think _Phoenix_ knows how old he is.”

“Yes, well with Pip around a century old, we’ve got a bit of an age gap,” Jederik pointed out. “By human standards it might be a significant age difference, but I’ve seen couples that are thousands of years apart simply because one is immortal and the other one wasn’t. Age means very little in the supernatural world.”

“Can we just agree that Fionn is cute when he calls her nicknames?” Finnegan interjected.

“Says the one who’s probably weirded out the most by supernatural customs.”

“I am _not_ weirded out. I’ve been doing this long enough that I’ve gotten over how old my partners are compared to me. Except for Aslaug, since we’re around the actual same age.”

“But _Fáfnir_ is much older, meaning that I’m still older and wiser than you,” Aslaug pointed out.

“And yet you yourself _are_ just a child,” Jederik said. “By dragon standards you’ve just come of age, and you might even still be called a fledgling back home. You’ve much to learn about being an immortal, Aslaug. Though I will admit, you’ve handled a great deal more than a normal human ever could. As have your soul-mates alongside you. For now, I think we all deserve a break to recuperate, and then we can go on conquering the world, or whatever you all do in your free time.”

“Definitely conquer the world,” Aysel said lightly, remembering a nice game she used to play with Vaan.

“Then we will gather after a short hiatus,” Fionn declared. “Aslaug, do be cautious not to split another mountain in twain.”

Aslaug rolled her eyes. “That only happened _once_.”

“At least Kuria will be looking after you,” Pip volunteered.

“Look after Miss Aslaug, okay, Mom?” Aysel ordered.

“I will serve Master without fail,” Kuria assured her.

Aslaug smiled at the gentle nature Kuria had when dealing with Aysel. He wasn’t entirely perky and overall blank to the world around him; Kuria and Kráka seemed to merge in the sense that they both valued Aysel’s opinion of them.

“Take care of the Tarnkappe,” Aslaug reminded Aysel. “Let it protect you, as you must protect it.”

Aysel nodded, pulling the cloak around her tight. She rarely parted from it, even when she bathed and swam beneath the waves. The Tarnkappe wasn’t hampered by the elements, even water, and it seemed to have clung to Aysel anyway, so Aslaug knew she’d made a good decision giving it to Aysel.

Splitting up mates wasn’t recommended, especially once the mates in question had fully bonded with their other parts, but all of them were old enough and strong enough to be able to manage without each other. It was a sign of strength to be able to handle distance from one’s mates, especially willingly inflicted separation. But vacations away from each other weren’t all that painful for them, and in fact it could end up strengthening their bond when they came together again.

“Shall we?”

Jederik nodded, Kuria stood up straight in salute.

With that, they left on their journey to find themselves once more.


	32. Tezgaga and Training

It would be a long time before things settled down, but at least they were going to give it their all. By the time Aslaug returned with Jederik, she felt a little better. Her comrades appeared to be better as well. Time healed a lot of things, wiped away the past bit by bit. She had been told by multiple sources that time did or didn’t help, but whether she liked it or not, the further she got from her past, the more the distance seemed to affect her.

Aslaug could now write in her journals without her handshaking or having the page wetted with tears. She documented her time with Jederik and Kuria at Jederik’s home, the mountain Tezgaga. It was part of a beautiful mountain range, tall and inhospitable for humans. Dragons lived in places like this, but the lands that Jederik’s clan lived in were large and very high up. At first, Aslaug had trouble breathing with the height, which Jederik assured her that she would get used to once she became more attuned with her dragon side. The trek through the cold snow might’ve been called entertaining with the ease that all of them traversed the lands - although Kuria had nearly gotten blown away at once point in a very comical manner that Aslaug made sure that she documented. Since dragons were denser in their human forms, they were big enough and heavy enough to not be affected by the cold, high winds of the mountains. Kuria wasn’t affected much by the cold, but a couple of times he did get blown back by a surprise gust of wind and/or snow.

Once, the three of them had to tolerate an avalanche, which Jederik merely laughed at and said that the youngsters were probably getting into trouble again. It was apparently a normal game where the dragons set off avalanches to go swimming/sledding in, or to simply see who could survive. It wasn’t fatal by any means, and the adults could dig out anyone that got trapped beneath the snow so long as they had a relative idea of their location, but they would get more than enough lectures to last a lifetime. Jederik admitted that he’d been in that boat once before, which Aslaug found amusing for so many reasons, though it wasn’t as though she expected Jederik to have been a stiff in his childhood.

His family welcomed Aslaug and Kuria, though Aslaug could feel the tenseness at a stranger. Aslaug began training under some of the elder teachers, trying to remain as humble as possible as she tolerated some of their trivial and quite frankly pointless training methods that were used to discipline the erratic youth. Aslaug tried to take a couple of the dumb trials as a test of patience, and that was the only thing that kept Fáfnir from straight up taking over and trashing the place - not that he’d get very far, since the place was made for dragon strength, but Fáfnir was insistent that he could put a dent in a place specifically built to tolerate dragon powers. Honestly, Aslaug didn’t want to take the chance.

After moving up with some of the more advanced trainers, to the point that she and two others were personally training by one master and she was vying for the affections of this master to be trained one-on-one, Aslaug started to feel bad for the other students who were genuinely giving their all. There were about a dozen trainers for personal one-on-one training, and there were classes for the lower levels that were up to thirty students to one trainer. Dragons gave everyone a chance, but the quality of teaching did depend on the dedication and wisdom of the individual.

“I feel bad, Jederik,” Aslaug admitted. “I mean, I’m just an outsider, not even _from_ the Tezgaga tribe. And I’m taking a spot from one of the kids who probably deserves to be here instead.”

“Don’t feel bad, Aslaug. You earned your way to your spot fair and square, no nepotism or anything. In fact, you had the odds _against_ you as an outsider. Even the elders and trainers don’t like outsiders who step out of their place, and so they’re extra hard on them. It helps that you’re humble.”

Aslaug chuckled. “Yeah, well…when you’re feeling as…glum as I am, keeping Fáfnir’s impulses in check exhaust us both to the point that we don’t have time for shenanigans. It might get worse as I recover,” she warned.

Jederik laughed heartily. “Trust me, Aslaug, we value humbleness and all, but not _too_ much. If you don’t have a wild side in there, you won’t last very long. I’ll give you a tip: winning a fight, whether it be provoked or your own provoking, wins you big points. You lose a fight, regardless of whether you were goaded into it, did the provoking, or taken by surprise, whatever. You need to be prepared for a brawl regardless of the circumstances. Your bruises and scars won’t last very long if they’re not worth it, so inflicting scars and earning them both earn some respect points.”

Aslaug chuckled. “Good to know. I’ll give Kuria some advice to avoid confrontations entirely so that anyone thinking to challenge him doesn’t get their butt whooped and Kuria isn’t seen as a coward by avoiding fights entirely before they can start.”

“I don’t know. Anyone who thinks they can pull one over on a djinn like Kuria has it coming for them. I don’t think I’m the only one who would enjoy a display of Kuria kicking ass without even blinking at his accomplishments. You shouldn’t be afraid to let him put some of the arrogant shmubs in their place.”

Aslaug smirked. “Is that a sign that you want me to get him into fights?”

Jederik shrugged. “I’ve said no such thing. _But_ if he _were_ to have someone challenge him, avoiding the fights won’t earn him as much respect here as it would in a smarter-culture that values tacticians. There _are_ some who would find his evasion skills incredible, but not a lot here in the Tezgaga tribe.”

Aslaug chuckled. “You don’t have to try too hard to convince me, Jed. Just promise me we won’t get kicked out if Kuria destroys someone in a fight.”

“Just don’t kill or permanently damage them and you’ll be fine. And dragons are tough. We can take a beating that can take a while to recover from, but it’ll hardly be permanent damage.”

“Good to know. I’ll pass those restraints to Kuria.”

Aslaug’s test against the other two dragon people was certainly unnerving. They were both disciplined warriors, a man and a woman, as humble as they were ruthless. Aslaug didn’t know if she really fit into the same categories as the two of them. Apparently, they had prior training as well, and so it was a test of all of their abilities, and though Fáfnir assured her Aslaug was stronger, she still didn’t like to be overconfident.

Every test had two sides: surviving an overwhelming amount of the element and an extreme adverse environment to the element. They were brought across the sea on a boat with the master using some spells to make the trip less than a day despite Aslaug becoming severely disoriented by an extremely long day. Kuria ended up following her once they settled, and she asked him how far they went - around 10,000 kilometers. Aslaug asked if there was a word for that many meters, and Kuria went through a list of prefixes. 10 megameters was the simplest one, but Aslaug liked 1000 myriameters. Myria sounded like a cool name. Maybe she’d name her next pet after it.

Fire was first, as a natural element to the dragons. All dragons had access to some kind of fire power, be it offensive or defensive. The overwhelm test was a mountain of lava, which the master promptly set off and judged them all on how they reacted. Aslaug ran up the mountain itself, making an air bubble around herself to keep the ash and smoke from suffocating her, and diverted the lava away from both herself and her opponents. Lava training was something Phoenix had worked to teach her, and he had done it in the very subtle way of taking her up to a volcano with lava simply sitting and pooling there before promptly throwing her into a lava fight. Like a snowball fight, but with more lava. After that, Phoenix had dimmed down the murderous bit and actually taught her how to handle the heat, which was still difficult but far from impossible.

By the time she reached the top of the mountain of lava trial, she knew the only way to safely stop it would be to get the lava itself to calm down. Plugging the volcano would just make it an unstable bomb - although one of her opponents was considering the idea - and so Aslaug tried to figure out a way to safely calm an active volcano. The only way she could think was to find the fire deity inside the volcano and ask it to pretty please calm down, but the only way to contact a fire lava deity would be to jump into the lava and prove she could survive it. Well, the heat wasn’t really bothering her yet, so all she could do was heave a mighty shrug and dive in before she could think too hard about it.

The lava was surprisingly nice, a bit heated, but nothing more than a hot sauna felt like. Luckily the lava was thicker than regular water, so it was comfy and buoyancy was less of an issue. Honestly it was comfortable enough that Aslaug was considering finding her own volcano to put into the Kavern for her leisure.

“ _Oh, hello!_ ”

Aslaug ended up chatting with a cheerful volcano-god-ish guy (he said he wasn’t _really_ a god, but he didn’t really have another word for it, so Aslaug considered him a god) named Ai-Laau, ‘The Forest Eater.’ Aslaug resolved to call him Al. He was simply a humanoid torso made of lava, but Aslaug could tell he was a good guy from the get-go.

“ _Yeah, that guy brings trainees here all the time. Not many come for a nice chat though. I’ve heard about the Covenant in passing, yes, though I hardly expected the ambitious one to enact such a thing would be such a kind and daring dragon. Dragons are normally so brash and rude._ ”

Aslaug chuckled. “Well I’m only _part_ dragon, after all.”

“ _True, true. In any case, I might as well teach you some lava bending while you’re here. Your partners are up there right about now trying to cool the lava with the sea. I’m not sure what they hope to accomplish. I’ve been doing this since I first burst free from beneath the sea itself. I’ve made my own little home here, and they’re hardly going to be the ones to stop me. Now, maybe another lava deity could pose an issue. I don’t like much company, you see. Especially the women. The women scare me. But you don’t._ ”

“Uh, yeah, thanks. I think.”

Aslaug ended up learning a great deal from Al (he liked the name) and by the time she emerged from the volcano and returned down to where the dragon master and the other two apprentice candidates were waiting, she had learned how to starting on making more land masses and directing the lava at her own discretion. Al enjoyed the idea of being a part of the Covenant, so it wouldn’t be the last time they interacted, but for now, it seemed that Al was still far stronger than Aslaug when it came to his lava powers. Even so, Aslaug could both survive and manipulate the lava.

She’d been gone for a whole week, and in that time the master had been teaching the other two candidates their lava powers and then Aslaug was set to battle them both.

“What?!” all of them exclaimed.

The master looked at Aslaug. “You have learned from a lava deity.” He turned to the others. “The two of _you_ have learned from me, a lava intermediate. Though I am skilled at lava control, I have a far more diverse palate than a deity dedicated to lava itself. Therefore, two against one with a similar level of experience but vastly different masters you learned from will prove an eye-opening revelation.”

“Just a lava battle?” Aslaug asked. “What? We’re just throwing lava at each other? What can _that_ do for us?”

“Consider it an eye-opening experience.”

“What decides the conditions for victory?” the girl candidate asked. “Will you have us kill each other?”

“Of course not.” The master shook his head. “I simply wish to see what a duel between you will beget. Allow this to be a way for me to observe your fighting style using a new technique that you have no choice but to use despite being far from mastery. If you are ever faced with a situation where a new skill must be used but you have very little practice with it, I want to observe how you will cope. This is not a test of who will learn a new skill faster; it is a test of who will cope with an underdeveloped ability. You will learn under me, but it will not be a quick process. You will face challenges before you have completed your training. How you develop a power without guidance in a combat situation without a moment to pause and regroup is what I want to see. I will call off the duel when I have seen what I require.”

Aslaug glanced warily at her partners, but their faces gave away everything. Their demeanor expressed their determination to fight simply because their master had told them to.

‘ _What have we to really lose, Aslaug?_ ’ Fáfnir pointed out.

‘ ** _I don’t trust his reasoning, but I suppose it doesn’t hurt. He seems to be getting far more out of this than we’re being told._** ’

‘ _We can always beat these guys up without the lava power needing to be too good._ ’

‘ ** _Sure, but that’s cheating. He doesn’t want to know how fast we learn a skill, he wants to see how we use an underdeveloped ability. I can’t sustain lava against water, I can’t summon it, I can create it from its cooled form by warming it. All I can do is move it and survive swimming in it. I suppose I understand what the goal is: see if I can use this limited skill to still win. I wonder if those two are immune to lava too. And can they summon it? Sure, that master is not a_ ** **lava** **_master, but Al’s not exactly some wise sage or anything. If we’re being honest, he’s kinda a wimp._** ’

‘ _Can’t argue with that. But Al_ is _powerful enough to create an entire island in the sea with lava when the sea is actively against it. Actually, by using the sea to cool the lava into the rock that makes up this island, it’s a bit of a symbolic situation that’s pretty smart._ ’

‘ ** _How deep of you._** ’

Aslaug’s suspicions were well warranted considering the first thing that happened upon the duel’s beginning was her two opponents slamming their hands into the ground and summoning a tidal wave of lava. Aslaug couldn’t tell if they were merely summoning it with their power or if they were heating the lava that had cooled to create the island beneath them. Regardless, the lava was given right to her, voiding her problem that she couldn’t summon a lava source on her own. She actually had the advantage now because she could pull the wave of lava to her will.

She felt the familiar tug of someone else’s will fighting against her own, and though she wasn’t that experienced with lava, telepathic control was one of her best skills regardless of the material she was working with. Using her Radial Vectors gave her an advantage against two other wills who weren’t even working in sync together. She aimed the wave of lava at them and threw it with all her might. Based on their careful dodge and concentrating their will over the lava that came far too close to them demonstrated that they weren’t immune to lava, which Aslaug knew would seal the deal of her victory.

Aslaug concentrated the lava to surround her before shooting it forward in two separate streams aimed at each of them. Fáfnir’s constant training helped her long since learn multitasking with her radius, so it wasn’t that different to send two streams of lava following two different people. The new item she was controlling reduced her to holding still rather than being capable of mobility like with her radius, but that was easy to hide since she sent the snakes of lava after her opponents so aggressively that they hardly had time for a counterattack. The man turned and dived for her, but Aslaug just pulled on her radius to move her body enough to dodge, pivoting on her foot to make it seem very natural. Disguising her radius was something she’d had to learn from Fáfnir. Honestly, dealing with that dragon had taught her so much.

Aslaug finally pulled a small ring of the lava around the area while she began driving her opponents within the boundaries, subtle as she could. She released the snakes of lava from pursuing their targets and added them to the ring, causing it to expand upwards into a veil of lava, a dome that closed in around them. Aslaug was at the epicenter, and though she felt increasingly frantic wills from her opponents, fighting over the lava to break through, Aslaug held firm and began pulling the lava inwards. She wondered how far the master would allow her to get before he called for her to stop.

There were two different reactions. The man aimed to push through the barrier while the woman dived to attack Aslaug before things were completely over. The interesting thing, that the master later noted when the battle was over, was that all of them obviously used powers outside the intended test of lava skills. The man managed to break out of the lava barrier, but only by using his sword that was enchanted for fighting magic-based creatures. Aslaug had been knocked out by a powerful blast of energy that had been concentrated in a bomb form. It was a technique that wasn’t very universal or anything, but a smart move that her female opponent had mastered in particular.

“All of you ended up using your initial skill-set alongside your lava skills. It is clear that Aslaug is a superior fighter and has far more experience, and so she was quick to use every skill that she felt was necessary as soon as it became relevant. Regardless of the supposed rules I established as a lava battle focused on your adaptation capabilities, she used whatever she felt she needed, and lava was more of a suggestion rather than a rule. She was told to use lava this time, so she used lava, but she could’ve fought in any number of ways and she did not bind herself by the rules. It took the two of _you_ until the fight had been entirely _lost_ before you decided to break the supposed rules.”

The two students seemed ashamed, but they hid it under their respectful façades and resolved to do better the next time.

“What did he mean, you were using your other powers the whole time?” the woman asked.

“I was using my radius,” Aslaug explained. “It’s basically a telekinetic bubble, I suppose you could say. I couldn’t beat both of you in a battle of wills to control the lava, especially if the two of you worked in sync with a harmonious thought process. You didn’t do that, but if you _had_ , I’d have stood no chance just based on lava alone. So I used my radius. I always use my radius unconsciously when trying to control things. My radius was my first ability that I learned, and so it’s my strongest power.”

“You’re…Aslaug, right?” the man asked. “I’m Alyn. This is Daesie.”

It occurred to Aslaug that she hadn’t really known her partners up until now. But since they were going to be together for even longer than they suspected, they might as well become closer friends. Aslaug still wasn’t sure what she felt about her partners or even what they thought about her. Considering that she had practically been praised while the two of them had been berated, she wasn’t sure if they were angry or confused or jealous or if they were honorable enough to accept their defeat without any other emotions on the matter. She found amusement when she learned their names were spelled with different variations, and it seemed like things were light enough for the most part.

Their lack-of -ire challenge wasn’t that difficult. They were tasked with going to the ocean and preventing the lava from cooling, even summoning some lava from beneath the sea. Aslaug knew it was possible, but only someone like Al could possibly manage to summon lava from beneath the earth under the sea.

Aslaug just needed to naturally learn how to sustain the lava within the cold water for that test. It wasn’t instant, not for any of them, but it was without guidance. Aslaug still didn’t understand the point.

They stayed on the island for a water trial involving the large ocean where all of them were taught by the master to push and pull water with their will like they did with lava. It was a bit difficult with the chaotic tides crashing into the island, but with enough concentration, they began actually affecting the waves moving them to their own rhythm.

“Moving a new element is not just telepathy,” the master explained. “It is tapping into a specific structure that makes up whatever you’re intending to move. You are directly connecting your aura to an energy signature and harmonizing with it. Most creatures are born harmonized with something, but dragons can adapt depending on their situations growing up. Exposing yourself to a certain environment allows you to harmonize with the nature around you. Harmonizing with a single supernatural element gives you the most access, concentrated practice. But attempting to harmonize with multiple supernatural elements weakens your control over the rest; the control averages out among all of your abilities.”

Aslaug didn’t know why Alyn and Daesie seemed interested in these revelations, but Aslaug thought about it more as common sense. She’d been training for years with multiple different techniques and magic styles, so the elements seemed trivial, things that she could learn whenever she wanted if she just concentrated hard enough.

They had a test to see who could create the largest wave. Aslaug didn’t know about her companions, but she had worked on the Covenant and therefore learned that ocean gods and earthquake gods worked together to create enormous waves that flooded into the land whenever they needed to make a point. Aslaug had sighed and started thinking up rules on when they could flood a place, but for now Aslaug just needed to know that a little earth-based meddling could create an enormous wave. Apparently it was a lot longer of a process than she had initially anticipated, involving moving the very heavy rock at the seabed, but she organized a giant wave with one of the underwater earth gods while she functioned as the water deity working with them. The shockwaves that came from rubbing two of the large plates beneath the sea together created a giant push that nearly flooded the whole island. Al would loudly complain by causing his lava mountain to explode and expand his entire island by at least a foot in each direction, completely blanketing the whole place in lava and hot rock for weeks.

The lack of water test came from going close to Al’s hole at the top of the mountain and pulling water out of the air. Air had certain levels of humidity, and it was possible to change the state of water into both a gas and a solid like ice. If it was possible to harmonize with water, that meant it was possible to pull water from its other states and even push water into those states, boiling water or freezing it.

“I don’t get what this is supposed to be about,” Aslaug admitted. “Jed just told me that maybe I should go and learn something from this master. But I feel like I’m not learning anything.”

“I highly doubt the training we must work so hard to accomplish is what he intends to teach you,” Alyn said. “The elements are not what you need to learn. Adaptive magic is a dragon trait, but it is not what you need.”

“I think, perhaps you needed a break,” Daesie suggested. “Whatever you were doing before Jed brought you to the tribe must’ve been really taxing, considering how bad you looked when you first arrived.”

“I looked bad?”

“Exhausted, both mentally and physically. Did something happen?”

“In what manner?”

“Something mentally exhausting. Working too hard, missing out on something you regret missing out on? Stuff like that. Possibly both.”

Aslaug stared out at the horizon of their shelter. “I hadn’t really thought about it. I’ve been…” Aslaug paused.

“What?”

“I was…” She gave a wry chuckle. “I was mourning the loss of someone close to me. I thought I’d moved past it, at least enough to…keep functioning as normal again. I know that forgetting isn’t the answer to loss, but…how are we supposed to move forward? How am I supposed to teach a young girl about the death of her mother figure? How am I supposed to comfort someone who…loved this woman like a sister and a comrade? I can’t keep a family together. It was the prospect of raising a kid that made me leave them, but not just that. I didn’t like holding still, having nothing to do. So I went out to find something to do, and I did. And I was gone so long that the last things I said to her were in fear and resentment. And when we’re afraid, we do terrible things.”

The two dragons listened to her without speaking. They offered no words of sympathy, positive or negative. Aslaug could tell they understood, but the best way to respond was to not respond at all.

Training continued as Aslaug was quickly lost in thought each day. Great storms could happen on the island as a result of the conflict between the lava and the sea, heat and cool constantly fighting even in the air. Aslaug learned that wind was one of the more dangerous elements when used properly. Like water, it could seep through to basically everywhere, the two were the intermediates that everyone needed to survive (beyond some gods who were specifically built and existed to survive on their own without either air or water), and both could be manipulated into shapes that could be thin as a single molecule. The only difference was that air was much thinner of a fluid, an invisible force that could be manipulated in a myriad of ways and was much more useful when you were a creature that lived primarily in air.

Aslaug was whipping around blades made of air by the first few days of struggle, focusing on shaping it into different configurations so that it could take on the same kind of form as water, only that water was visible, and air was less so. She could make whips of wind, swords, and simply have it hold her up like a bubble.

One of the tests was to create air, essentially going underwater and creating an air bubble that sustained her despite her using up the air by breathing. She needed to extract the necessary parts of water that could turn it into air, which was more than fun for Aslaug, and one of the things that took her the most time to even _start_ pursuing. For a while, she was stuck at the shores, hovering beneath the surface with an air bubble she manipulated to her heart’s content, and she broke the surface just by standing up if ever she failed and ran out of air to breathe.

Aslaug’s other test was one where she had to use the winds to pick herself up, easy enough, and then fly around. That wasn’t it, though. She had to fly up as high as she possibly could, using air alone, and above the clouds the air started getting thinner, again hard to breathe, but it also the winds were more intense in fighting against her. Wind was one of the most nuanced and difficult skills to master, and Aslaug would have the most fun with it even going forward.

Earth wasn’t a challenge either. Earth was all around Aslaug, she manipulated it manually through kicking and punching anyway, but actually controlling the object itself required one to be rigid and sure of each and every action. Earth was the cause of vibrations, and was very similar to her radius in the sense that she could feel sensations if she just focused on merging with the earth.

Using earth meant that Aslaug could punch and kick to do deliberate, physical things, far more entertaining than the far more malleable elements she’d delt with before. While her comrades were working on regular earth itself, Aslaug started working on the different types of earth, like minerals that had different structures, and the details of forged weapons and that they were technically made of material she could connect with as well. While the master hadn’t intended on teaching her anything beyond the basic elements (as this _was_ just a trial period, of course) Aslaug ended up using her free time while her opponents caught up to focus on the details and nuanced forms of her control.

Aslaug mostly ignored everyone else, taking her time to play around with her abilities and forgetting entirely that she was in some sort of competition and that she was leaving her competitors in the dust. She hated sleep and resting and wasting time, and thanks to Fáfnir she rarely calmed down, as he was also eager to get more powerful.

Aslaug began shaping minerals and making weapons from the metals that she found, she practiced meditating and concentrating on the area around her not through her radius, but through the earth itself, and then there were the days that she simply flung rocks around and practice new techniques of her own invention that still fit the rigid and firm stances that earth manipulation required. She tried handicapping herself and using her different element controls with just a single finger at a time, or even just her toes. She even did everything just with her head in case she was restrained. Moving things fully mentally was no different than using her radius to its fullest extent, so she practiced honing in on the different elements without moving a muscle, closing her eyes and becoming almost one with her surroundings rather than herself.

Incidentally, she was told she had moved on to a spirit form that she wasn’t supposed to have unlocked without years of meditative practice, but when she revealed that she _had_ many years of meditative practice - it was a long story - it was like she’d flipped a switch and her comrades started giving her a wary eye.

“This experience was clearly not built to train you,” the master told her. “Jederik is well known in our tribe, so I agreed to take you as a disciple, if you could prove yourself. You have only shown me a great deal of confusion, Aslaug.”

“In what way?”

“Many ways. And that’s the point. While I can sense your passion as well as your prudence, you do not fall into any specific category. You are bold but you are humble, you are brash yet you are restrained. You are unstable yet you can concentrate more deeply than most students of mine can manage in a year. Your absolute focus is the reason you are able to master so many skills so quickly; you are attuned to the magical world far greater than any of us are and like a dragon you absorb traits around you. You are too many things at once, Aslaug, and you have a great burden on your shoulders that you have no idea how to process without everything else getting in the way. You are torn in so many pieces, Aslaug, and when something or someone confronts you, it gets split among all those pieces until it is broken down into nothing. You have no struggles, you have passions, but what do they all make you into?”

“Into? Well I’m…I’m just me.”

“You are not ‘ _you_ ’ right now, Aslaug. You are denying ‘ _you_ ’ any room in there.” He poked her forehead.

“So what do I do about that?”

“I can give you power, Aslaug. What I cannot give you is humanity. Humanity hurts. A lot of supernaturals wish to deny their humanity or use it to their advantage in an extreme way. Humanity is unpredictable, so taming it while also balancing its good and its bad is nothing to frown upon nor look down upon. Your humanity is fragmented into so many parts that you can’t see it anymore. It’s there, but it is not whole. You are fragmented, you are not you right now. What hurt you, Aslaug? What nearly tore you apart and ripped you to pieces trying to hold together?”

Aslaug wondered why she found it so hard to speak. She opened her mouth and bid her words, but they refused to slide from her tongue. She tried again, this time pushing her words to free themselves. “I lost someone. I…I’m not sure how I’m supposed to move forward. I’m not…good with these things. I loved her and the last things that I said to her were…less than ideal. Her family was my family, and now…now I need to figure out how to deal with keeping together a family that I myself am falling apart in as well. I can’t be supportive to them when I’m trying my best not to fall apart too. I don’t know how to confront my feelings, whether I should cry or get angry or just curl up in a ball and quit. But for some reason, I feel like I can’t do any of that. I don’t feel like I can do anything, so here I am: not doing anything.”

“The stronger your power is, Aslaug, the less humanity you are channeling at any given time. With your humanity being denied and fragmented in your grief, you are learning your abilities far faster than normally possible. You are no doubt strong, Aslaug, but it takes even the strongest a great deal of time to train a new power. The gods above have rejected their humanity, purged themselves of their mortal limitations in return for their power, but now they can hardly change their nature at all. Zeus cannot control the dead no matter how hard he tried, while Aphrodite cannot control the seas.”

“What happens if I can’t…figure myself out?”

“I couldn’t say, but I know that it will not benefit you. At best, you will become a neutral force, losing all sense of want and desire. Going into hibernation is common in this case - settling between life and death, continuing and halting, giving up but not giving in. At worst, you will become extremely destructive, to both yourself and the world around you. You may find the world worthless, or you might find yourself and your existence painful. You could become very self-destructive, and I couldn’t say whether or not you would harm others or keep the damage contained to merely yourself.”

Aslaug sighed.

“This journey I give you may prepare you to face your family, or maybe it will not. That is up to you.” The master stood up. “Continue under my guidance as long as you require it, but I recommend you return to your family soon, Aslaug. I know you are a good person with a great deal of potential. Don’t let it go to waste.”

He walked away, leaving Aslaug sitting at the sea alone.

“Kuria?” she finally asked.

“Master?” He appeared at her side without a sound.

“Should I go home?”

“I cannot give opinion, but based on all outside factors, returning to our mates is a recommended course of action.”

Aslaug smiled. She stood and pulled Kuria into a hug. “Can you tell me how I’m supposed to help them? To cope with this loss? Can you tell me how _I’m_ supposed to cope with this loss…?”

Kuria’s arms rose and returned the embrace, and Aslaug could feel Kuria’s change. “You will survive this loss, Aslaug. I’ll help you, the others will help you, and you will help them. We just need to be together. I’m here for you right now, and I believe you needed a break, yes, but soon we will return home.”

Aslaug smiled. “I’m sure you miss the others. I’m sorry for dragging you out here, Kráka.”

They chuckled and pulled back from the hug, eyes blood red and hair falling about halfway between Kuria’s length and Kráka’s full length when fully transformed. “Oh, don’t worry about me, hon. I’ve still got the Kavern, you know.”

Aslaug chuckled. “Should’ve realized. How are they?”

They puffed their cheeks and crossed their arms, mimicking an overdramatic pouting child. “Having far too much fun without me.”

“Aw, you poor neglected extra-dimensional djinn.” She patted them on the head. They swatted her hand away, but they couldn’t help their smile, so they stuck their tongue out at her. “Thanks. For…trying to make me smile.”

“Well, I’d think I succeeded.” They booped her nose. “And I’ve butted in more than enough to keep them busy. Aysel misses you and tells me to send you her regards. We’ve been living with Gudrun. Your uncle joined them, of course, so he’s practically royalty now, as if his nobility wasn’t enough. On the bright side, he’s being taken care of. There _has_ been some tension when it comes to Gudrun and her mother. Gudrun wants to take on the kingdom of Gjúki as well as her husband’s kingdom. On the bright side, nothing else bad has happened.”

Aslaug sighed, but she appreciated Kráka’s efforts so much that the warm bubbly feeling in her chest pushed the corners of her mouth upwards. “Doesn’t mean my curse isn’t broken.”

“But it _does_ mean things can get better. Maybe you can get a handle on the power of the Andvaranaut. I mean, the power of curses is always powerful, and with the strength of the Andvaranaut’s curse, I wouldn’t say that having control over its effects would be detrimental.”

“Well…you’ve a point there.”

They pulled her into another tight hug. “Don’t give up hope, Aslaug. Things will get better. Loss is a part of eternity. You shouldn’t get used to it, but you will learn to cope with it.”

She sighed. “I know. But it hurts.”

“It will. I know you’re strong, Aslaug, but it’s good that you hurt. It means you’re still someone I can respect. You can keep your pride, hide weakness from your enemies, but I never want to see the day you become apathetic to the rest of the world and yourself.”

Aslaug chuckled. “I promise, I’ll do my best not to let it come to that.”

Kráka pulled back from the embrace and began pacing the black, cool lava that made up the rock of the island. “About going home…do you think you’re ready to go home?”

“Why would I not be?”

“Because you still haven’t found your peace yet. Alone time, meditation, learning new abilities, it all helps you, but are you sure you’ve found your peace?”

Aslaug chuckled. “Maybe I should wait until we finish the prelims and then announce that I quit.”

“Not quit. Quitting is considered cowardly and enacts disrespect in people who hear you quit. If you go to the end and simply don’t get chosen, that’s another story. And I’m not sure that the master is going to choose you when he knows that you should be going home and this was never meant to be anything serious anyway.”

Aslaug nodded. “Right. We finish up here, and then…let’s go home.”


	33. Return (The Third)

“It was never about training only one of us and seeing who was victorious. It was about training us all, thinking that there was a competition. Only thing about me is that I didn’t think there was a competition the whole time. I didn’t care about winning or losing, I just wanted to see what I could learn in the meantime, regardless of whether I went further. And I think that was the whole point. This experience taught me things, but only when I wasn’t focused on competition, I suppose that made a difference.”

He was training all of them at once, but Aslaug was the only one who was never a candidate for actual tutelage under the master. She was there to follow him around like an adventurer while everything else was just a bonus in teaching her the basics of her powers, while the rest was hers to develop on her own rather than following the strict pattern of a master and that master’s idea of the world.

Aslaug was an independent learner. She absorbed information around her, always willing to see other perspectives regardless of whether or not she agreed with them. She liked to know things and then use them to her own ends, interpret things as she saw fit regardless of the peer pressure and influence around her. She liked to listen and acted how she wanted to with everything else she learned being just suggestions.

Aslaug felt like she was living in a world where she couldn’t think any original thoughts for herself. She needed to hear something before she could even consider using it. Sometimes she felt like there was something wrong with her in that respect, but maybe it was just that she needed inspiration in order to give her own opinion. Wasn’t that how _all_ learning was? You found the standards of society then made your own opinion based on it.

“You never intended to stay, did you?” Alyn asked.

“No.”

“Good luck, Aslaug,” Daesie said. “I hope you find that peace you were looking for.”

They used the Kavern to get back home, since the Kavern could take them anywhere they had already been. It was possible to go new places with the Kavern, but not recommended, since a new location could end us causing fluctuations. The Kavern took you where you wanted to go, and if you didn’t know the layout of your destination, you could end up jumping into a wall and break physics or something dumb like that.

Aysel was growing into a fine young woman, in Aslaug’s opinion.

She helped Aslaug set up a system of education so that anyone who was orphaned like she was could still manage to find teachers in their certain range of skills. Aysel was definitely what you would call ‘Home-schooled,’ but she was extremely intelligent and driven to learn more and be useful. If others in her position just had the opportunity to be raised by a loving family with education born of a specialized skill set - aka Pip being water-based and her being water-based - they had the potential to be just as good and kind.

“You’re back!”

Aysel’s hug was tight as any dragon’s, but for some reason Aslaug felt like it was warmer and better. A soul-mate thing, she supposed.

“Kuria!” Renna practically jumped into Kuria’s arms. He smiled at her as she basically hung from his taller frame.

“Renna is fond of Kuria,” Finnegan admitted. “I think their personalities really hit it off somehow. Don’t ask me how though.”

“It’s good to see you again, Finn.” Aslaug wrapped him into a hug. “You better be getting rid of that beard though.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve gotten the lectures.”

“How was Tezgaga?” Asyel asked.

“It was very interesting,” Aslaug told her. “Slightly chilly.”

“It’s not _that_ chilly,” Jederik protested.

“Not to a dragon maybe,” Pip said. They held their arms across their chest and imitated a shiver. “It’s freeeeeeezing!”

“Let’s discuss over dinner!” Renna suggested.

Renna was very active that night, cheerfully keeping up conversation and snuggling close to Kuria when she could. Kuria smiled his natural, charming half-smile, but he seemed to be genuinely amused by her - which was odd considering Kuria’s lack of a true personality. Finn was beside Renna, but he didn’t seem bothered by her favoring Kuria that night, so Aslaug didn’t make any comments.

Aysel and Pip were catching up, sharing stories of Tezgaga while Pip encouraged Jederik to answer questions. Aslaug stared at Aysel while she talked animatedly. She seemed content, and Aslaug wasn’t sensing anything in her that appeared disturbed or anything. But grief was a fragile thing. Aysel could be fine one second, but the moment she thought too hard she could end up breaking down in tears against her will. She could try and hold it back, but her lip would tremble and her eyes would water against her will, and she’d be blowing snot into the nearest cloth for ages. At least underwater she could wash it away.

Aslaug was learning how grief worked. She felt like she was standing on a cliff, safe and sound, hidden behind a fence that was nice and safe. But she was looking over the edge, trying to see the sea below. She knew that if she leaned too far over the fence she’d fall and there’d be no coming back, but she was also curious to see if her grief would really hurt her, if it was really as bad as she thought. She was afraid, she realized. She was afraid of being sad.

“I wanna find her,” Aslaug declared. “I wanna find Vaan.”

“You can do that?” Aysel asked in disbelief.

“The death gods are very strict, and for good reason, but there _are_ exceptions. Bringing back the dead is frowned upon, and illegal under the Covenant, but _communing_ with the dead is not strictly forbidden. It just may tempt people to try and bring them back, or it could have them try and force their way to life again. But we know Vaan and we know the rules. I just want to tell her everything I wasn’t able to. They owe me favors for helping stabilize the system with the Covenant. Let’s go find her.”

“Yes!” She jumped out of her seat and dived at Aslaug, gripping her in a tight hug. “You’re the _best_ Aslaug!”

Aslaug’s body both tensed and relaxed at Aysel’s excitement. She embraced the girl and hugged her tight, trying to express all her grief and apologies in that one motion.

“I’ll start asking around tomorrow,” Aslaug promised. “For now, you should get some sleep.”

She sent Aysel to bed, trying to remind herself that Aysel wasn’t a child anymore. In fact, Aysel hadn’t been a child for a long time. It was Aslaug who couldn’t stop seeing her as a little girl. Maybe that was her way of keeping Aysel distant in her mind, just a child that she saw as a girl who needed protection and spoiling. If Aslaug started treating her like a woman, she didn’t know how things would change, but it felt like another cliff that she didn’t want to glance over too far.

“What’s been happening between you three?” Aslaug demanded.

“What’s been happening?” Renna repeated. “What do you mean?”

“Kuria is being all…not Kuria. Finnegan’s all okay with it, and Renna, you’ve been out for _far_ too long. Fionn is usually in charge, if not Fionn then Phoenix, if not Phoenix then Dearil. It’s not healthy for you to be out too long on your own, Renna, and I doubt Lorcan’s eager to be out for as long as you’ve been out - she’ll be bored out of her mind. And I love you, sweetheart, but too much of you is starting to concern me. I’ve been getting weird vibes from you all ever since I returned, and something about _you_ Renna, is seriously disturbing. You smell off as well, a mixture of concern and excitement, and while I could assume that you’re worried about me and my return, it’s far more potent than that.”

Renna cleared her throat and elbowed Finnegan. “Tell her.”

“Why _me?_ ” Finn exclaimed.

“Because it’s _your_ fault.”

“What about Kuria and Kráka?!”

“They have more control than you do.”

“But they started it!”

“And you finished it.”

“Would you all please explain?!” Aslaug snapped.

Renna shoved Finnegan forward. He glared at her but stood tall and cleared his throat. “Ahem, well…the thing is…okay don’t scream, please.”

“Did you break Fionn somehow and how he’s stuck as Renna?”

“Not…entirely. So, uh…Renna…Renna might be pregnant.”

“WHA-?!”

He clapped a hand over her mouth and hissed, “Shhh! I told you not to scream!”

She pulled his hand off with ease. “You know how unstable Phoenix is! What happens when Fionn emerges?”

“He uh…hasn’t been able to. Renna’s kinda…stuck.”

“It’s very weird,” Renna admitted. “Lorcan’s complaining, Fionn’s trying not to panic, and Phoenix is sitting back watching in amusement.”

“But you don’t have a bleed, Renna! Dearil is infertile! She-”

“She’s _Phoenix_ , Aslaug,” Finn reminded her. “A literal god. Of rebirth. And adaptations. Plus, faeries have always had a low pregnancy rate and they have less frequent and intense bleeds than humans. And with Dearil constantly switching to Fionn and Phoenix, there was never a problem before. It’s just random chance.”

Aslaug sighed. “Okay, okay. Renna, are you okay?”

She nodded. “I don’t feel anything painful, really. Sometimes I get a little woozy, but some food, water, and rest make me feel all better.”

“You must not throw up like human women and conserve all of your energy. You just need extra sustenance since you’re feeding another one. Ugh, this is just _great_. I’ll do some asking around, but your situation is so complicated that I doubt there are many we can consult.”

“We can take her back to the Court,” Finn suggested. “Faeries would know about faerie pregnancies, and her sister might be of use since she’s part god herself.”

“Right, right, but I doubt a fire deity is the right person to ask about childbirth and stuff. We can consult some childbirth gods. It’s fine, don’t panic.”

“None of us are panicking, Aslaug.”

“I’m telling it to _myself!_ Shut up! Renna, which one of them is the father?”

She shrugged. “Both of them ej-”

“Nevermind, I don’t need your brutally honest details about your sex life. I’m blaming Finnegan by default.”

“Hey!”

“Renna, you tell us if _anything_ seems to worsen about your condition.” She took Renna’s face in her hands. “Fionn, if you can hear me, you’ll be back in no time. And Phoenix, if you can hear me, fuck you.”

* * *

“I know, but I had enough anxiety on my plate before all this.” Aslaug sighed and leaned back on the carpet.

“Well now you’ll get to raise a kid. You’ll get to _name_ it, maybe.”

Pip gasped. “Can I help?! I wanna help! _Pleeeeeeeeease!_ ”

Jederik pulled his mate into his lap and caressed their living hair. “Of course you can, love.”

“Yes!”

“Do you know the sex?”

Aslaug shook her head. “We can find out if we want, but I think the others are intending to keep it a secret. Renna’s just so small and delicate, and she’s a faerie too, so…”

“Hey, faeries are resilient. Childbirth is dangerous for _all_ creatures. But she’s got a lot of help on her side, eh?”

Aslaug sighed. “It doesn’t mean that I’m not worried. Renna’s not only just a part of the craziness that is Phoenix at the moment, but she’s the split part of Dearil. Renna and Lorcan cannot exist permanently, and they should not be out and about for more than an hour or so. If Renna’s been stuck out for so long…”

Jederik pulled her into a hug along with Pip. “We’ll be here for you, Aslaug. Dragons stick together, even loner dragons.”

Aslaug smiled. “They really don’t, honestly.”

“Yeah, well _we_ do. And besides, I think my Pip would kill me if I just left you on your own. And Pip’s always wanted to help raise a kid.”

“You’ll be the godparents for sure.”

“Yay!” Pip exclaimed.

“At least now we know the risks to avoid in the future, and even if something happens, Phoenix and Kráka won’t let anything stand in their way.”

Aslaug heaved a great sigh and closed her eyes, relaxing against Jederik and Pip’s soft tentacle hair caressing her comfortingly. “Right. There’s nothing to worry about. We’ve got plenty of resources. At least my husband had a child with my husband-in-law/wife-in-law and not anyone else.”

Pip giggled. “They’re very in love, you know?”

Aslaug smiled. “I know. I’ve caught them more than enough times. But they’re cute. They’re adorable. Fionn’s no doubt having a panic attack; he’s never wanted to be a father, not with how little experience he’s had with father figures. But Finnegan is a brilliant father. They’ve all raised Aysel, even if she _did_ grow supernaturally fast. She turned out fine. But she was raised without _me_ , and _with_ Vaan…”

Jederik squeezed her and Pip tighter. “Hey, don’t be like that. You’re going to do great. And maybe Vaan can’t be here physically, but she can be here in spirit, and she can give you some advice when you visit her.”

“I can’t be like her, Jed. I’m not a maternal figure.”

“But you’ve got a big family who can fill that role. Don’t fret over it.”

“I can be a maternal figure!” Pip volunteered. “Me and Aysel. Water creatures are mostly calming figures.”

Aslaug ruffled her hand through Pip’s living hair. “I appreciate that, little one.”

Jederik hugged Pip tighter and nuzzled their hair (reminding them who they belonged to, no doubt).

“Thank you both,” Aslaug said.

“Hey, we may not be soul-mates, but there are these things called friendships, and even if they aren’t soul-bonded friendships, they can still be pretty good.”


	34. Will

“Thank you so much, Eileithyia.”

“They’re your _mates_ , darling. How could I say no? I managed to make Zeus give birth to Athena by breaking his head open after he absorbed the pregnant Metis. If I can pull off Athena growing inside of Zeus’s head and then being born with Hephaestus cracking that sucker’s head open, I think I can manage your soul-mate’s little predicament. Now, a few questions. Do you want the kid to be fully grown or an infant? Do you want to have the baby naturally or through a bit of divine intervention? If the latter, where do you want it to pop out?”

“Ugh, those aren’t really questions for me. And besides, there are still more complications. Renna isn’t supposed to be active for this long, especially without Lorcan there to balance her time out. Dearil would be the one to give birth naturally, but Fionn is the default persona.”

“Fionn being male isn’t a problem, but we _do_ need to sort out that whole split personality thing with Dearil, don’t we? Hm…well, we’ll come to a solution. I’ll be there to make sure the baby is healthy and happy, regardless of the changes that occur. So long as I’m keeping watch, even if Renna transforms, nothing bad will happen to the baby inside. In fact, since this is Phoenix we’re talking about, he should be able to preserve things on his own. Not even a baby bump is necessary since Phoenix is so powerful.”

Aslaug sighed. “This is far too complicated for me. The last thing I expected to do in my life is have a supernatural baby complication.”

“Childbirth is always a whirlwind, believe me. It’s going to add chaos to your already hectic life, but the good kind of chaos. Women pray to me all the time during their pregnancies to ensure their baby’s health and to relieve the pain of birth. Women are tough for going through such a process, but so are the men and women who dedicate themselves to the baby and the pregnant woman to help them through the long and arduous process. If anyone needs some torture, just ring me up, Aslaug. Labor pains are a brilliant curse - especially to place upon arrogant manly men.”

Aslaug smiled. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Oh! Which reminds me. Some of the death gods have contacted me - childbirth goddess, I help with rebirth, we stay in touch - and they want you to know that they can’t find your sister. They’re fully willing to overlook some rules in the Covenant, considering you helped _make_ those rules, and allowing you to _speak_ to your sister isn’t much of a problem in the first place, but none of them have seen her soul. Everyone’s been asking around about whose jurisdiction she belonged under, and the default is obviously Freya and Odin, but neither of them have seen her - not as a candidate for Valhalla or Fólkvangr. And no, not even Hel. _I’d_ assume she’d go to Fólkvangr, as a peaceful child, but being the daughter of Sigvǫrðr means that she could’ve very well turned out a warrior as well in Valhalla. It depends on who she was, but your sister was fierce, cunning, as well as demure and reserved. Either way, no one can locate her, minor or major gods alike.”

Aslaug’s heart began to sink.

“In other news, in light of Svanhild’s death, she left something in her enchanted will - something that was written by her and cannot be tampered with for fear of the gods’ wrath.”

Aslaug’s brow furrowed. She gave Vaan a spell that would lock one thing into protection with the power of the gods promising to enact revenge should it be wrongfully tampered with. Vaan chose to use that power…for her _will?_

“I suppose I should give it to you now, while you’re here.” Eileithyia waved her hand and passed Aslaug a sheet of paper that formed in her hand. “I believe that the gods planned to speak to you about this as well.”

Aslaug took the paper and a deep breath before she glanced down to read the words.

“W…What _is_ this…?”

“Svanhild made _you_ the sole inheritor of her kingdoms. You might note that this was not normally within her jurisdiction, but with blessings from all of the deities - a power granted by _you_ , no less - there is nothing that any mortal or single deity can do to protest. Under the terms of the Covenant, a majority vote would need to take place to overrule this verdict. Naturally, we are going to have a meeting about it.”

Aslaug felt like her blood had turned to ice. This was _three kingdoms_ that Vaan had left her. In different places, who were under the rule of other people! Vaan hadn’t even married into one of them, but she’d put Jörmunrek’s name on there with a note that it was revenge for what they’d done to her.

“We were actually all discussing this recently,” Eileithyia continued. “We want you to establish a human kingdom governed by the rules of the Covenant. We want you to use this opportunity to expand the Covenant to more of the mortal population. Choose the subjects who you know will abide by the rules - whether they are aware of the Covenant or not - and leave the rest in the dark about the Covenant until we can finish expansion. It won’t take too long, Aslaug, I promise. And in the meantime, you and your soul-mates will be treated well.”

Aslaug set down the enchanted papers. The only way to describe her feelings at the moment was a large chasm of despair. She felt empty, standing on the precipice, and if she leaned any further forward, she was going to fall. “Eileithyia…”

She held up her hand. “I am just the messenger. The meeting will take place in three mortal days at dusk. You’ll get more information then. The supernatural world is chaotic, Aslaug, but you have a chance at uniting everyone. Even the more ruthless and chaotic are actually considering your terms as you’ve announced them. Please consider it, Aslaug. I know it will be a great deal of work, and you’re already under a lot of stress, but that’s why the rest of us will be working for you to help. Including helping make sure your soul-mate delivers a healthy child. _They_ will be destined for great things as well.”

“I don’t want my family to be holding any more burdens,” Aslaug admitted. “I feel like I’ve strained them enough as it is.”

“How about you speak to _them_ about it? You have no idea how much they want to help you, Aslaug, but they don’t know how. They feel like they’re burdening you by having this child, on top of everything else you’re dealing with. But I promise, having a child will make your life brighter. It teaches you good things, as your soul-mates will tell you. You’ll be stressed as all get-out in a _good_ way. It will help you.”

Aslaug sighed. “I should be happy…Why am I not? What’s wrong with me?”

“You _are_ happy, Aslaug. You’re just worried. You’re worried that things can get worse. That’s how all parenthood is.”

“I failed Vaan. I put this work before her and…and I may never see her again.” Aslaug felt like a dam was bursting in her chest, forcing water to her eyes. “I’m powerful, I have a family, I have a genuine chance at making this system work for supernaturals and mortals alike and yet…I don’t feel happy. Because I failed the one person that I…what if this was the cost? The cost of all of this was…Vaan.”

“Oh, my dear.” Eileithyia set down her tea and moved around the table of her drawing room to sit beside Aslaug on the couch. She wrapped her arms around Aslaug in a motherly embrace. “This was not your fault. None of us know what happened to her, but we will. There’s nothing in this world that isn’t ruled by deities like us. We’ll find her, no matter how long it takes. Maybe _she’ll_ be able to tell you - you are a good person, Aslaug, and you deserve to be happy.”


	35. Hrókr and the AEGIS Empire

“We should call him…” Pip made a weird noise that was similar to their real name.

“Uh, we should try something in _their_ native language, little one,” Jederik whispered.

“Then how about…Seaweed!”

“I’m gonna guess that sounds a lot fancier when it’s in another language,” Aslaug said. “Most things are.”

“ _See_ Jed?” Pip urged.

“Well we need _them_ to be able to pronounce it, and they can’t speak your tongue,” Jederik reasoned.

Finnegan was lying snuggled up against Fionn, stroking his dull maroon hair worryingly. He had just recently transformed back after the birth. Finnegan was worrying his head off, but he knew that Fionn needed rest.

“It would be _my_ fault…” Aslaug caught him saying to Kuria while the three of them were alone.

Kráka was lying opposite of Finnegan beside Fionn. They had gotten to the point that they could come out whenever they wanted, and for however long they needed to be out, and they insisted on being present and aware for this moment to support them.

Aslaug still felt a bit awkward, not knowing how she should be reacting to her soul-mates going through this. They were already chaotic enough on their own, but their entire dynamic had seemed to evolve into something much more…odd. Would it get even more different? How much further could Aslaug drift from them?

Eileithyia swaddled the baby and hummed a light tune that made the crying baby fall asleep. Was it supposed to look that small? Was its eyes supposed to be like that? What about the blood? Was Fionn okay?

“Ooo, look at _you_ , little one!” Eileithyia crooned.

“What is it?” Aslaug snapped instinctively.

“Oh, nothing, dear. It’s a healthy little boy. He seems to be mostly human, actually. His supernatural genes are locked away at the moment. That’s why he’s smaller than a supernatural baby is. This is normal size for a human, I assure you.”

Aslaug heaved a sigh of relief.

“Hey, it’s all good.” Aysel took Aslaug’s hand and squeezed it tight. “Everything’s perfect, Aslaug. There’s nothing to worry about. If it weren’t for you, things could be a lot worse. You’ve done so much, so you should just relax right now.”

Aslaug stared into Aysel’s calming violet eyes. She exhaled and felt the tension in her body release. “Thank you, Aysel.”

“Hrókr!” Pip exclaimed. “It means Crow and Rook! Like Kráka!”

“I don’t desire the child to be named solely after my alias,” Kráka voiced.

“But that’s also _my_ name that I _gave_ you,” Aslaug pointed out.

“I wouldn’t mind,” Finnegan admitted, though he looked dazed enough to be pleased with anything involving his mates at that point. Perhaps it was the soul-mate bond doing something to him. He reached over Fionn and stroked Kráka’s hand. Magic sparked like static between them, but Finnegan didn’t even seem to notice. “Why wouldn’t you want us to name our son after you? You’re just as important as the rest of us.”

“But not _more_ important than you, love,” Kráka said, taking Finnegan’s hand.

“I would not mind.” All of them turned as Fionn’s eyes slowly opened. His hair lightened slowly to a bright red at seeing his soul-mates gathered around him. He smiled and looked to Kráka. “He would be named after a piece of my heart. What reason have I to protest? And Aslaug will be part of this child’s life as well - as it should be.”

Kráka’s smile softened and they reached up to stroke Fionn’s cheek. Fionn leaned into the caress. “If it would please you both, then I have no further qualms.”

“Whoo-hoo!” Pip cheered. They threw their arms up and ran around in a small circle. “I helped name a baby!”

“Shh, my little gem,” Jederik said. “Fionn needs his rest.”

Pip squeaked before throwing their hands and their tentacle hair over their mouth. Jederik chuckled and pulled them into an embrace. Pip released their mouth and smiled apologetically, making a shushing motion with their finger.

Fionn nodded, his hair fully relaxing to a warm honey color. He closed his eyes, leaning against Finnegan, but moving his arm and urging Kráka to snuggle close as well. They all knew that Fionn liked being smothered by his mates when he was having a bad or exhausting day.

“So, have you considered the offer?” Eileithyia asked.

“What offer?” Aysel repeated.

Aslaug nodded. She stared at her three soul-mates. She stared at Aysel, Pip and Jederik, and then the small child in Eileithyia’s arms.

“Yes, I’ve decided,” Aslaug declared. “I’m going to make sure this world is safe for the people that I love. I’m going to make sure little Hrókr grows up in a good, safe world.”

She walked over to Eileithyia and put her hand gently on Hrókr’s forehead, sweeping down to take the small baby hand in her finger.

“Let’s go make an empire.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whelp, that's the end of the first part of this story. I've still got a couple more plot points to resolve as we go forward, but I plan to post them in a new story once I've finished ironing out the details.


End file.
